Rippee Writes: football season is here
A pair of transfers, pass rush thoughts and potential Swag Kelly opportunity?
Hope everyone had a good weekend. We will have a new podcast out tomorrow morning talking Arkansas with Kyle Sutherland of HawgTalk as our opponent preview series continues. Ole Miss also starts fall camp on Saturday, and we will have a preview show on Thursday or Friday as well. So be on the lookout for that.
We’ve got lots of football to get to today.
Jon Haynes enters the transfer portal
Ole Miss safety Jonathan Haynes entered the transfer portal, according to a report from On3 Sports.
Haynes played in all 10 games last season. In 2019, he made 10 starts at safety and recorded 55 tackles with an interception. Haynes would have contributed in some capacity this season for the Rebels, but as was seemingly the case with Jacquez Jones transferring, Haynes likely saw the writing on the wall that his role was going to shrink and decided to take his talents elsewhere. This is just my opinion, but this isn’t something to be concerned about. Yes, Haynes has a lot of game experience under his belt and you can’t ever have too much depth, but this is a product of the secondary getting deeper and more talented. The 2019 defense had far less talent than the 2021 team will, particularly on the back end. The arrival of transfers Otis Reese, Deane Leonard and Jake Springer over the last year, and newcomers like Tysheem Johnson, as well as Deantre Prince’s return to the program give the Rebels more (and better) options in the secondary.
Haynes was a solid player on a defense that lacked talent. Sure, Ole Miss would’ve liked to have his game experience and the added depth, but it’s also not overly surprising or unreasonable for Haynes to want to go elsewhere to avoid his snap count diminishing. It is as simple as that.
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Rebels add Oregon State pitcher
In other transfer news, Ole Miss Baseball landed Oregon State transfer Jack Washburn. The right-hander struck out 43 batters in 34.1 innings last season. He boasted a 3.12 ERA in 21 appearances (five starts) and limited opponents to a .186 batting average. Washburn sits in the low 90s with his fastball, with the ability to touch 95 and has a pretty solid breaking ball to compliment it. This is a very good get for Mike Bianco and the Rebels.
I would assume Washburn will be in the mix for a weekend rotation slot, which is by far the biggest question mark for this team heading into fall ball. I can’t help but wonder if the Rebels are not yet done in the transfer portal, because even with this addition, the cupboard still feels somewhat bare in terms of middle relief and rotation options. One more quality arm addition via transfer could change the perceived ceiling of this team next spring.
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Ole Miss opens fall camp on Saturday
Football season is finally here. The Hall of Fame Game is Thursday night. You’ll have a football game of some sort every single week from now until February. The Rebels start camp this weekend. I’ll get into all sorts of various position and roster breakdowns throughout camp, but in the days leading up, I’ll leave you with one thought/question per day.
Here’s the first: will Ole Miss be able to generate an adequate pass rush this year?
The 2020 defense’s inability to consistently pressure opposing quarterback exacerbated a litany of other issues and played a large role in the Rebels having the worst defense in the SEC. With a secondary that should be much improved, whether or not they can consistently get to the quarterback will be vital to the defense’s collective improvement. It starts with Sam Williams. He’s a freakish athlete that will likely be the most talented player on the field for Ole Miss. Williams needs to be more consistent on a snap-by-snap basis. His motor is not always operating at full capacity on each snap. He led the team in sacks in 2020, which is a relatively low bar considering the team total was only 14. Williams has an opportunity to shoot up draft boards with a productive season. The ability is certainly there. Will the consistency accompany it it?
Beyond that, there isn’t a ton of experience on the edge. Tariqious Tisdale will be a nice compliment opposite of Williams, and I imagine the coaching staff wants to move him around if they are able to. What about behind those two? Brandon Mack will miss the season with a foot injury, meaning guys like Cedric Johnson and Tavius Robinson will be given more opportunity. The interior defensive line is a similar story. Juniors K.D. Hill and Quinten Bivens got the bulk of first team reps in the spring. Junior college transfers Isaiah Iton and Jamond Gordon are expected to contribute immediately, and you’d have to think true freshman Tywone Malone will get a serious look at immediate playing time.
There are enough pieces to make the case that Ole Miss could be a lot better rushing the passer, but there isn’t a ton of game experience to point to either, particularly behind the top of the depth chart.
Carson Wentz to miss time with foot injury
The Colts newly-acquired starting quarterback Carson Wentz will miss 5-12 weeks with a foot injury.
Why should you care, you ask?
He was on the roster once. Why not give it a shot? I just want to see Kelly get a chance in an NFL game that counts. There’s too much talent here for Kelly to never touch the field in a regular season game. Yes, he cannot seem to get out of his own way. But for my own curiosity, I’d like to see this happen.
Content for your perusal
Check out Neal McCready’s 10 weekend thoughts column here.
Chase Parham provided an early look at the Rebels’ third opponent: Tulane.
Zach Berry has a couple of recruiting stories up on the site.
On the horizon:
Magnolia State golf update
More football content in the newsletter
Ole Miss preseason camp preview pod
Arkansas football preview pod tomorrow.
That is all from me today. Thanks for being a loyal subscriber. Send to your friends and tell them to join the fun. Back with more soon.