After winning 11 and 10 games in the 2023 and 2024 seasons, respectively, the Ole Miss Rebels seem poised to take a step backward in 2025. No disrespect to Lane Kiffin or the program, but Ole Miss lost a ton of talent following the 2024 season.
While there are talented players around, there aren’t nearly as many as there were a season or two ago. Here’s an early look at the Rebels ahead of 2025.
Ole Miss 2025 Season Preview
Roster Outlook
There are some issues here– or at least, some unknowns here. Start at QB, where Jaxson Dart will be in the NFL instead of in Oxford. Austin Simmons was a backup a season ago and showed promise in his brief moments of playing time, but considering the high level of Dart’s play, it’s only natural to expect a step back at the position. There is some quality depth at the position, so if Simmons isn’t ready, somebody else will be.
At running back, Ole Miss lost its top four rushers and will be basically starting over. LSU transfer Logan Diggs figures to see some playing time as will Troy transfer Damien Taylor. But it’s safe to expect that nobody will play as well as Henry Parrish (678 yards, 10 TDs) or Ulysses Bentley (419 yards, 5 TDs) a year ago. This bunch is a major question mark.
Ole Miss also lost four of its top five receivers. But Cayden Lee (57 catches for 874 yards) is an experienced target capable of All-SEC level play. Dae’Quan Wright showed flashes last year after transferring over from Virginia Tech. Freshman Caleb Cunningham could also be a day one contributor. It’s a quality group.
The offensive line tends more toward uncertain. Diego Pounds should be solid at left tackle, but some of the interior spots will probably go down to the week of the opener to be determined. It’s hard to not imagine Ole Miss dropping a bit from 38.6 points and 527 yards per game last year.
Defensively, the step back could be more drastic. Ole Miss allowed just 14.4 points and 311 yards per game in 2024. But only two of the top 13 tacklers from 2024 are returning this fall.
The linebackers seem like the strength of the defense. TJ Dottery and Suntarine Perkins are the two top returnees mentioned above. Perkins’ 10.5 sacks a season ago make him a player to watch for All-SEC type accolades, particularly if he has bulked up his thin frame a bit.
The Rebels are thick in the trenches up front, but not quite as experienced as a season ago. It’d be tough sledding to hold opposing rushers to 2.3 yards per carry, as they did in 2024. Look for that number to climb some.
The secondary is the red flag here. There are no returning starters from last year’s squad. LSU transfer Sage Ryan can help at safety and Wydett Williams was outstanding at UL-Monroe, but it’ll be interesting to see how both handle starting in the SEC.
The special teams look adequate. It’ll be new faces at kicker and punter, but Western Kentucky kicker Lucas Carneiro should be a quality pickup. The punting situation is a little shakier, and the Rebels shouldn’t lack for athletes to throw out at returner spots.
Schedule Outlook
It’s a reasonable SEC slate for Ole Miss, with the biggest issue being back-to-back road games at Georgia and Oklahoma in mid-October. That’s a fairly brutal pair of games. Those are probably the two toughest road games for Ole Miss, and non-conference matchups with Georgia State, Washington State, Citadel and Tulane at home should afford a good shot at a 4-0 non-league slate.
The Rebels do avoid Texas or Alabama, which already makes a pretty good case for them as proponents of the end of the old divisional system. LSU is probably the toughest home game.
Predicted Record
That home game against LSU on Sept. 27 looks to be a massive test. The question is how well will the new faces have adapted ahead of that? The week two road game at Kentucky could be a very early tell on the ceiling of this team.
Current betting lines have the Rebels looking at over/under projections from 8.5 wins in the regular season. That seems a bit optimistic from here. LSU looks like a loss and the back-to-back games at Georgia and Oklahoma and both probable losses as well. That leaves at Kentucky, home versus South Carolina and home versus Florida as the games that probably tell the tale of the season.
6-6 looks like the floor, with 9-3 perhaps the realistic ceiling. But 7-5 or 8-4 seems to be the likely landing spot for the Rebels. Those three games look like a 2-1 slate which would put 8-4 Ole Miss outside of CFP contention. A 3-0 run could make it interesting, but a 1-2 mark in those three games would leave Rebel fans disappointed.
Call it 8-4.
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