Ole Miss Rebels 2023 College Football Preview
August 1, 2023
2022 Recap
Record – 8-5
ATS – 5-8
The schedule was set up for early season success and the Rebels took full advantage of the situation as they rolled out to a 7-0 (!) start. Things took an unfortunate detour to TURD TOWN once the schedule got more difficult and they lost five of their final six contests. That included a two-point loss to their hated rivals from Starkville and a blowout defeat at the hands of Texas Tech in the Texas Bowl (L 42-25).
Ole Miss Rebels 2023 Outlook
OFFENSE
QB Jaxson Dart did a good job replacing the great Matt Corral last season but he made a few too many mistakes along the way (62%, 20-11 TD to INT). Dart returns to Oxford and will be glad to know that superstar RB Quinshon Judkins is just a sophomore (1,567, 16 TD, 5.7 LY). We’re not 100% sold on the depth behind Judkins but hopefully Ulysses Bentley can stay healthy this season. Ole Miss will be without their top-two WRs from LY but HC Lane Kiffin did a great job in the transfer portal by pilfering WR Zakhari Franklin from UTSA who’s posted back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons (37 career TD). The HITS KEEP COMING when you consider they also snagged Louisiana Tech’s #1 WR Tre Harris (935, 10 TD) and the uncoverable TE Caden Prieskorn from Memphis (602, 7 TD). The OL is one of the best in the SEC and they’ve got excellent performers at center and LT. The Rebels will score points BIGLY.
DEFENSE
The Rebels were improved on defense LY and allowed fewer than 400 YPG (388, #8 SEC) for the first time since 2015. They need to kick things up a notch if they wanna truly compete for an SEC West title so they brought in former ROLL TIDE DC Pete Golding to help sort things out. Ole Miss will rely heavily on transfers this year as they brought in a TRUCKLOAD of them and note that they’ll be without the top-four tacklers from LY’s stop unit. The DL looks decent as they’ve got big bodies in the interior and DE Cedric Johnson has proven to be a decent PENETRATOR (4 sacks, 5 QBH LY). They’ll need a number of transfers to step up at LB but they’ve imported some quality players including Monty Montgomery (LUA-VUH). Four starters return to the back end and the depth was greatly improved via the portal. The defense appears “SEC average” on paper but their eventual grade will depend on how well the new faces and holdovers come together under their new DC.
SPECIAL TEAMS
There’s plenty of continuity on special teams but the Rebels will need to break in a new PK. Thankfully, they’ve got a pair of decent options in Texas A&M transfer Caden Davis and their 2021 PK Caden Costa (14-17 FG).
Schedule Analysis
Overall – The non-conference schedule is very soft and their toughest test is a road trip to Tulane. It’s not great to draw a road game with Georgia (!) from the East but at least they get to smoke Vanderbilt. Things get HOT AND HEAVY mighty quick as Ole Miss has to tangle with ROLL TIDE (A) and LSU (H) in back-to-back weeks in September (!).
Potential ATS Trouble Spot – Georgia Tech (Sept 16)
This is a prime lookahead situation as this game precedes the brutal DAILY DOUBLE noted above. Be aware that Lane Kiffin is just 6-8 ATS in the role of home favorite with the Rebels.
Season Win Total
Market consensus August 1
Over 7.5 -115
Under 7.5 -115
MEGALOCKS says:
Lean: Over
We fully anticipate that they’ll go 4-0 in non-conference action and that means they’ll need to win four SEC games to hit the ‘over’. That won’t be easy, but it’s certainly doable for a team with this much talent.
MEGAmazing Tidbits
Ole Miss is one of four SEC schools that has yet to play in an SEC Championship Game (Texas A&M, Vanderbilt, Kentucky).
The Rebels are 12-2 at home over the L2Y.
Oxford, Mississippi was founded in 1837 and is named after Oxford, England.
MEGALOCKS Forecast:
We can’t lie. We’re big fans of the LANE TRAIN and wonder if this could be the year that they get to the top of the SEC West mountain. It’s a longshot to be sure but ROLL TIDE doesn’t appear to be invincible and they get to battle LSU at home. The defense gives us reason for concern but we view the Rebels as a spicy SURPRISE PACKAGE to back in the futures markets at a big prices. HOTTY TODDY!