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The University of Mississippi Athletics
New Mentality: Loaded Staff has Rebels Ready for Postseason Return
7/31/2019 | Football
2019 Season Outlook
For Ole Miss head coach Matt Luke, the goal is clear for 2019: get the Rebels back to a bowl. The path to postseason begins with momemtum, coming off a second straight top-25 recruiting class and some heralded staff hires.
After a 5-7 campaign in 2018, Luke found himself in the market for both an offensive and defensive coordinator, and he delivered in a big way.
Mike MacIntyre, a two-time national coach of the year and coaching veteran with nearly three decades of experience, will take over the reigns as the Rebels' defensive coordinator while Rich Rodriguez, considered one of the most innovative offensive minds in college football, will serve as Ole Miss' offensive coordinator.
Ole Miss is one of only two teams in the nation, along with Alabama, to have three coaches with Power 5 head coaching experience.
Luke and the Rebels return a total of 66 lettermen and 11 position starters in 2019. A large portion of Ole Miss' experience is on the defensive side of the ball as the Rebels bring back 33 letterwinners and eight starters from the 2018 Landshark defense.
Nearly half of the returning defensive players, 19, have starting experience and should provide quality depth for MacIntyre as the Rebels transition to a 3-4 base defensive system.
Seniors Benito Jones and Josiah Coatney will help anchor the Rebel defensive line. Coatney finished third on the team in 2018 with 63 total tackles, while Jones was a load on the inside, recording nine tackles for loss and six quarterback hurries.
Linebacker MoMo Sanogo returns for his junior campaign after leading Ole Miss in tackles last season with 112. Sanogo is one of only two Rebels over the last 12 years to record at least 100 tackles in a season.
The Rebels also return some key starters and additional depth in the secondary. Myles Hartsfield and Jalen Julius are back for their senior seasons, while cornerback and return specialist Jaylon Jones will also return from injury to help add experience in the Rebel defensive backfield.
On the offensive side of the ball, Rodriguez and the Rebels will have some big shoes to fill with the loss of eight starters, including All-America performers A.J. Brown and Greg Little. After Jordan Ta'amu lit up the scoreboard in 2018, finishing fourth in the country in passing yards per game (326.5), the Rebels hope another first-year starter finds the same success. Redshirt freshman Matt Corral is back after appearing in four games last season. In a few spot appearances in 2018, Corral was 16-of-22 through the air for 239 yards and two TDs.
With the loss of Brown, as well as the departure of D.K. Metcalf and DaMarkus Lodge, the Nasty Wideouts (nWo) will look for some new faces to step in and take the belt. Sophomore Elijah Moore returns after appearing in all 12 games as a true freshman, hauling in 36 catches for 398 yards and two TDs. Braylon Sanders will be relied upon as the junior from Hogansville, Georgia, has the most experience of any Ole Miss wideout with 16 career games played.
While the Rebels look to replace starters at most offensive positions, the Ole Miss running back group should be a strong point of attack in 2019. Prior to dealing with an injury in the latter part of 2018, Scottie Phillips ranked in the top 10 nationally in nearly every rushing category and was on pace to challenge for the Ole Miss single-season rushing record. Despite playing sparringly over the final three contests, Phillips finished 2018 with 928 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground. His 14 total TDs ranked fifth in the SEC.
Preseason All-SEC tackle Alex Givens and guard Ben Brown, a 2018 Freshman All-SEC selection, both return to help anchor the Ole Miss offensive line.
The Rebels had 12 mid-year enrollees participating in spring camp, the seventh-most amongst in the country.
Below is a position-by-position breakdown headed into spring drills.
QUARTERBACKS
• Ole Miss is replacing Jordan Ta'amu, who ended 2018 with 3,918 passing yards – the second most in a single season in program history – and is doing so with all freshmen.
• Redshirt freshman Matt Corral takes over under center after appearing in four games as a true freshman in 2018.
• Kinkead Dent and Grant Tisdale were both mid-year enrollees and joined Corral in spring drills.
• John Rhys Plumlee is another frosh signal-caller in the mix after arriving in Oxford over the summer.
RUNNING BACKS
• The running backs should be an anchor for the offense, highlighted by the return of Scottie Phillips.
• Phillips was on pace to shatter the 1,000-yard rushing mark last season, but finished with 928 yards and 12 TDs on the ground after battling through injury the final three games of 2018.
• Isaiah Woullard ended the season with 510 all-purpose yards.
• After standing out in the spring, Tylan Knight will see time in the backfield and at receiver. He started 2018 at running back before converting to defensive back when several players' seasons ended due to injury.
• Ole Miss signed five-star and Under Armour All-American running back Jerrion Ealy, and he will vie for playing time.
• D'Vaughn Pennamon returns after recovering from a 2017 injury and will see touches alongside mid-year enrollee Snoop Conner.
WIDE RECEIVERS
• The Rebels will look to reload the slots following the loss of 2,766 receiving yards in A.J. Brown, DaMarkus Lodge and D.K. Metcalf.
• Sophomore Elijah Moore played in 12 games as a true freshman, recording 36 catches for 398 yards and two TDs.
• Junior Braylon Sanders has 16 career games of experience at Ole Miss, including a breakout 133-yard performance against SIU in 2018.
• Sophomore playmaker Tylan Knight will split time between the slot and running back as a versatile weapon in the Rebel offense.
• Freshmen Miles Battle and Demarcus Gregory will see more time on the field after both redshirting last year.
• Dontario Drummond and Jadon Jackson were mid-year enrollees, while 2019 signee Jonathan Mingo stepped on campus in the summer.
TIGHT ENDS
• Ole Miss loses NFL Draft pick Dawson Knox, but returns five lettermen at the position.
• Senior Octavious Cooley has appeared in 26 career contests and boasts 12 receptions.
• Returners Jason Pellerin, Alex Faniel and Jonathan Hess add depth to the position.
OFFENSIVE LINE
• The Rebels lose a combined 127 starts from four valuable players on the offensive line that have been a staple for years, including All-America selection Greg Little.
• The Rebels return senior Alex Givens and sophomore Ben Brown, who earned SEC All-Freshman honors in 2018.
• Givens started every game at right tackle in 2018 and has appeared in 34 career contests, while Brown finished 2018 with 12 starts at right guard and did not allow a single sack on 446 pass blocks.
• A trio of fourth-year juniors – Bryce Mathews, Royce Newman and Eli Johnson – exited spring as front-runners to fill out the line. Mathews and Newman have played multiple positions, while Johnson is competing at center.
• Chandler Tuitt, Michael Howard, Jalen Cunningham and Hamilton Hall are also returners pushing for time on the o-line.
NOSE TACKLES
• Veteran group that will be a major strength of the Rebel defense.
• The Rebels return two starters from the interior including preseason All-SEC picks Benito Jones and Josiah Coatney. Both can play tackle or end, and Coatney is expected to start outside.
• Jones compiled three sacks and nine tackles for loss last season.
• Quentin Bivens and Sincere David add depth inside.
DEFENSIVE ENDS
• In the new 3-4 scheme, senior Josiah Coatney is expected to slide from tackle to end. He was third on the team in 2018 with 63 stops.
• Tariqious Tisdale, Ryder Anderson and Austrian Robinson all appeared in 11 or more games in 2018.
• Tisdale recorded 33 tackles, including three TFLs.
• Anderson started the final two games of the season and also tallied 33 tackles on the year.
INSIDE LINEBACKERS
• The Rebels return both starting linebackers from 2018, including team tackle leader MoMo Sanogo with 112 stops. Willie Hibbler is also back after coming on last season with 50 tackles.
• Donta Evans, Jacquez Jones and Zikerrion Baker provide experience to the position group.
• Ashanti Cistrunk, Eric Jeffries, and Tavario Standifer are three newcomers that participated in spring drills and add depth.
OUTSIDE LINEBACKERS
• The swap to the 3-4 defense pushed many former defensive ends to the OLB spot, including Qaadir Sheppard. The senior started 10 games last season and recorded 48 tackles, including a team-high 10 tackles for loss.
• First-team junior college All-American Sam Williams enrolled early and quickly emerged as a starter in spring drills. He totaled six tackles in the Grove Bowl.
• Charles Wiley, Brenden Williams and Luke Knox provide depth at the position.
DEFENSIVE BACKS
• Ole Miss returns an experienced nucleus including Myles Hartsfield (41 tackles, seven pass breakups), Jalen Julius (34 tackles) and Vernon Dasher (36 tackles, four breakups, one INT).
• Jaylon Jones and Montrell Custis, who both started games early in the 2018 season, return from injury to further strengthen the veteran group.
• Sophomore cornerback Keidron Smith appeared in all 12 games as a true freshman, including four straight starts to close out the season.
• Juco early enrollee Jon Haynes enters fall camp as the starter at strong safety after an impressive spring.
• Returnees Armanti Linton, C.J. Miller, Kam White and Jakorey Hawkins along with newcomers Jamar Richardson and Jalen Jordan give the Rebels quality depth in the secondary.
SPECIALISTS
• The Rebels return all three main components of theirspecial teams: Luke Logan (K), Mac Brown (P) and Jack Propst (LS).
• Logan finished the 2018 season tied for second in school history with 22 field goals and second in points scored (111).
• Brown averaged 41.2 yards per punt including 13 punts downed inside the 20-yard line and six punts of 50 or more yards.
• Jaylon Jones will compete for kick return duties again in 2019 after missing most of the season due to injury. Jones has two career kick return touchdowns.
