OXFORD — For the third year in a row, Ole Miss will be replacing the bulk of its leading wide receivers. But, as was the case the first two go-arounds, the Rebels appear to have plenty of viable options this fall.
In 2021, Ole Miss experienced life without Elijah Moore. In his stead were Dontario Drummond, Braylon Sanders and Jahcour Pearson. In 2022, that trio was gone, and senior Jonathan Mingo and Mississippi State senior transfer Malik Heath stepped up to the plate with a combined 1,832 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Mingo and Heath are gone, however, meaning a new cast of characters will be filling in a few major voids out wide when fall camp starts up next week.
The Rebels’ leading returning receivers are seniors Jordan Watkins and Dayton Wade, who had 449 yards and 309 yards in 2022, respectively. Ole Miss addressed its lack of experience through the transfer portal, however, bringing in a few key names during the offseason.
Senior Tre Harris was a first-team All-Conference USA pick last season at Louisiana Tech, finishing the 2022 season with 65 catches for 935 yards and 10 touchdowns. The Rebels also added Texas A&M’s Chris Marshall, who was one of the stars during spring practice and was a four-star recruit coming out of high school. Marshall was dismissed from the team in May.
Ole Miss received another huge pickup in June from UTSA star Zakhari Franklin. Franklin caught 175 passes for 2,163 yards and 27 touchdowns combined over the last two seasons for the Roadrunners. His 15 touchdown grabs last season were tied for second in the FBS, and his yardage total ranked 11th.
The Rebels also bring in in four-star recruit Ayden Williams out of Ridgeland, Mississippi. Williams had 1,265 yards for Ridgeland High last season and caught 28 combined touchdowns in 2021 and 2022. Head coach Lane Kiffin spoke about both Williams and freshman linebacker Suntarine Perkins — both highly-touted class of 2023 prospects from Mississippi — at SEC Media Days last week.
“Both those guys, we hope that they play this year and have significant roles. They’re both really talented,” Kiffin said. “They both hit the ground running here in the offseason, trying to learn everything, and both are at a position of need. So, we have very high expectations for both of them.
Ole Miss also returns sophomores J.J. Henry and Bralon Brown and senior Jalen Knox. Henry caught five passes for 56 yards in 2022 while Brown, who was aa four-star recruit, caught one pass. Knox began his career at Missouri, where he caught 77 passes for 1,031 yards and four touchdowns in three seasons. He has yet to catch a pass for the Rebels but was a standout in the spring.
Jeremiah Dillon — a four-star recruit in the 2022 class who redshirted last season who did not catch a pass — also returns, as does senior Qua Davis. Davis has caught one pass over the last two years since transferring from Itawamba Community College.
Philip Poe is sports editor.
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