Cameron Larkin
Ole Miss Coach Lane Kiffin and a few Rebel players finally took the stage at SEC Media Days on Thursday. By the end of the day, many Rebel fans were brought to ease.
Last season did not end how Ole Miss coaches, players and fans had hoped — with a four-game losing streak — but many of the questions and much of the dismay were resolved through various interviews during media availabilities in Nashville.
On the final day of the SEC season preview, Ole Miss, Tennessee and South Carolina stepped to the podium to face the media. Each of these three teams have high expectations going into this season, but none with more to prove than Ole Miss.
The Rebels finished last season winning just one of their final five games, including a loss to Texas Tech in the Texas Bowl.
Whispers about a possible defection by Kiffin to Auburn derailed the back half of Ole Miss’ season in large part because he refused to deny the rumors.
Many Ole Miss fans fell out of love with Kiffin when the season ended, but after his comments at SEC Media Days, those same fans are hopping back on the Lane train.
“I didn’t do a very good job at the end of the year of keeping our team together … down the stretch, there. After the Alabama game, I didn’t do a good enough job finding a way to keep our guys playing at a high enough level,” Kiffin said.
The only thing Rebel fans were looking for was accountability from the man in charge, and Kiffin obliged. It is safe to say, Ole Miss fans are headed into the 2023 season with newfound respect for their head coach.
Another major storyline to come out of the SEC Media Days was who Kiffin decided to bring with him. No quarterbacks were present, just star running back Quinshon Judkins, senior cornerback Deantre Prince and junior defensive lineman Cedric Johnson.
No quarterback representation from the players currently competing for the job — including Jaxson Dart, Spencer Sanders and Walker Howard — tells fans one of two things: Kiffin wanted to steer clear of as much drama as possible, or he has not made up his mind who will start in the season opener. The former is the more likely rationale.
Kiffin knows that there is a massive magnifying glass watching his in-house QB competition, so in order to divert attention away from one of college football’s biggest storylines, it’s possible he decided against bringing a QB along to Nashville.
In doing so, Kiffin allowed his other players to shine in front of the media. Judkins had a lot to say about this upcoming season, the team’s mindset and his thoughts on the QB battle.
As a bonafide top-three running back in the country, Judkins is looking to expand his role on offense to affect all areas of the field.
“I think it is not common in this league for a running back to be used in the passing game,” he said.
He later added, “I think that to be able to be in this offense and show what I can do with my skill set is awesome.”
Judkins is going into next season without a rear-view mirror mentality.
“This year, the one thing that will help the most is going to be keeping the main thing the main thing,” Judkins said. “Not losing certain games, ’cause at one point we were 7-0 and I think that the biggest thing is to stay focused and not get distracted by certain things we can’t control.”
As one of the better, if not the best, returning offensive players on Ole Miss’ roster, Judkins is largely affected by the ongoing QB competition.
Despite all of the uncertainty, Judkins said, “I am confident in every guy that (Kiffin) brings in. He knows what he is doing. I am excited to see those guys compete.”
Across the board, Kiffin and his players represented Ole Miss extremely well in the face of the media.
