The preseason praise for the Ole Miss football team is matching enthusiasm from fans with the Rebels earning their best preseason ranking by the Associated Press in more than five decades.
Coming in at No. 6 in the AP’s first rankings ahead of the 2024 season is an Ole Miss squad eager to make waves in year one of an expanded playoff format. The placement in the top-25 marks Ole Miss’ highest standing in the polls since 1970, when the Rebels entered the regular season ranked No. 5. Legendary head coach Johnny Vaught and quarterback Archie Manning were calling the shots in Oxford at the time.
54 years later, after loading up on players from both the high school ranks and the transfer portal while returning a cast of veteran production, early polls are buying what Kiffin is selling.
When Ole Miss kicks off the regular season versus Furman just 19 days from now, the Rebels, coming off of the first 11-win season in program history, will feature a decorated signal-caller in Jaxson Dart, a seasoned stable of running backs punctuated by Ulysses Bentley IV’s presence, a proven wide receiver corps highlighted by Tre Harris, a stout tight ends room spotlighted by Caden Prieskorn, and a revamped offensive line built to hold things down in the trenches.
RELATED: Ole Miss’ Dart headlines preseason Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award watch list
On the other side of the ball, defensive coordinator Pete Golding managed to pull some strings and land some of the most talented prospects from the portal and a group of highly-touted high school players. The defensive line will be led by Jared Ivey, J.J. Pegues, and top-ranked transfer Walter Nolen. Linebackers will be represented by Chris “Pooh” Paul, Jr., and Suntarine Perkins, while the secondary will consist of a talented pool underlined by Trey Amos and John Saunders, Jr.
Not only will the offense and defense take the field with a plethora of experience, but the special teams will also be returning a unit led by veterans in punter Fraser Masin and kicker Caden Davis.
A program that has yet to appear in the playoff, Kiffin is looking to strike while the iron is hot and have the Rebels among the field of powerhouse programs competing for a national championship and the experts seem to think it’s a reality.
The full top 25 can be found below:
- Georgia
- Ohio State
- Oregon
- Texas
- Alabama
- Ole Miss
- Notre Dame
- Penn State
- Michigan
- Florida State
- Missouri
- Utah
- LSU
- Clemson
- Tennessee
- Oklahoma
- Oklahoma State
- Kansas State
- Miami
- Texas A&M
- Arizona
- Kansas
- USC
- North Carolina State
- Iowa
Mississippi State and Southern Miss did not receive any top-25 votes.
