Game Primer: Football Awaits Primetime Showdown at Auburn

			#12/13 Ole Miss (5-1, 2-1 SEC) at Auburn (3-3, 0-3 SEC) Saturday, Oct. 21, 2023 • 6 p.m. CT Auburn, Ala. • Jordan-Hare Stadium
Watch • Listen • Live Stats Ole Miss Game Notes (PDF) • Auburn Game Notes (PDF) • SEC Game Notes (PDF)

WHAT TO WATCH FOR
• This is the 48th meeting all-time between Ole Miss and Auburn dating back to 1928.
• Auburn leads the series, 35-11 ... The original record is 35-12 to Auburn, with Ole Miss' 2012 win vacated.
• The Tigers lead 17-3 in Auburn and 13-3 in Oxford (13-4 in games played on the field).
• The Rebels enter ranked No. 12 in the Coaches poll and No. 13 in the AP Top 25.
• Ole Miss is one of six FBS teams nationally with two AP Top 25 wins.
• The Rebels are at least 5-1 to start for the third straight season, the best such streak at Ole Miss since 1957-62.
• Ole Miss is the only FBS team with both a 500yd passing (524, vs. Mercer) and a 300yd rushing game (317, vs. LSU).
• Of Ole Miss' 2,936 total yards, 2,124 (72.3%) have come from transfers.
• Ole Miss is one of 12 schools nationally with at least 7.0 yards per play, one of nine below 23 seconds per play.
• The Rebel defense held Arkansas to just 36 rushing yards, their fewest allowed since 2014.
• Ole Miss leads the SEC in both turnover margin (+6) and fewest interceptions thrown (2).
• QB Jaxson Dart ranks second in the SEC, seventh in the FBS at 323.3 yards of total offense per game.
• At 2,010 career rushing yards, RB Quinshon Judkins ranks ninth in Ole Miss history.
• Judkins (22) and RB Ulysses Bentley IV (22) are one of four duos nationally with at least 20 career rushing TDs.
• WR Zakhari Franklin is the FBS active career leader receiving TD (37), and ranks second in receiving yards (3,371) ... His 48 consecutive games with a catch ranks third among active FBS receivers.
• LB and SEC Defensive Player of the Week Ashanti Cistrunk has played in 54 consecutive games
• LB Suntarine Perkins leads all SEC freshmen with 3.5 sacks.

OLE MISS HEAD COACH LANE KIFFIN
Lane Kiffin is in his fourth season at Ole Miss, where he has led the Rebels to three consecutive bowl berths to start off his time in Oxford. In 11 years at the NCAA level, Kiffin has posted an all-time record of 89-48, including a 28-14 mark at Ole Miss. The Rebels ranked No. 3 nationally in rushing offense (256.6) and No. 8 in total offense (496.4) last season. Kiffin helped mentor and recruit talented true freshman running back Quinshon Judkins, who set the Ole Miss single-season records in both rushing yards (1,567) and rushing touchdowns (16). Kiffin guided the Rebels to a 10-3 record in 2021, the first 10-win regular season in school history. The Rebels finished the season ranked No. 11 in both the AP and AFCA Coaches Poll, its highest final ranking since 2016. Ole Miss ranked top-20 in the FBS in nine different offensive categories in his first season in 2020. In December 2016, Kiffin took over an FAU program that had won a total of nine combined games over the previous three seasons. Kiffin proceeded to take the Owls to new heights over the last three years, including two conference titles and two 10-win seasons. In his head coaching stops at USC, Tennessee and FAU, Kiffin has shown a propensity in helping turn programs around. Kiffin graduated from Fresno State in 1998 after playing quarterback for three seasons (1994-96) for the Bulldogs. He began his coaching career as a student assistant at Fresno State under Pat Hill in 1997 and 1998.

AUBURN HEAD COACH HUGH FREEZE
Hugh Freeze in in his first season at the helm at Auburn and owns a 106-50 career record. An experienced head coach at the collegiate level for 12 years, Freeze has quickly elevated each program he's led, including Ole Miss and most recently, Liberty. The head coach at Liberty from 2019-22, Freeze led the Flames to four bowl games and a 34-15 record. During his tenure at Liberty, he took former Auburn quarterback Malik Willis and developed him into one of the nation's top quarterbacks in 2021. Freeze has experienced similar success at each of his head coaching stops prior to Liberty that include Lambuth University (2008-09), Arkansas State (2011) and Ole Miss (2012-16). The Oxford, Mississippi, native returned to his hometown school and led it back to championship form during his five seasons as head coach at Ole Miss (2012-16). Freeze's time in Oxford was highlighted by a 10-3 campaign in 2015, the program's first 10-win season since 2003. Before returning to Oxford, the former Ole Miss assistant experienced a record-setting run at Arkansas State and Lambuth University.

TIGERS SCOUTING REPORT
Auburn enters the week 3-3 overall and 0-3 in SEC play. The Razorbacks outscored its first three opponents 118-37, but have dropped lost three straight SEC contests. Auburn is averaging 347.3 yards per game, with 191.5 of that coming on the ground. Michigan State transfer Payton Thorne leads the Tigers under center, completing 63 percent of his passes for 643 yards and four passing touchdowns. Jarquez Hunter is Auburn's rushing leader with 202 yards on 50 carries. Sophomore wideout Jay Fair leads the Razorbacks with 18 catches for 196 yards and two touchdowns. The Auburn defense has been very opportunistic this season, ranking No. 7 in the country with two defensive touchdowns. The Tigers rank No. 2 in the SEC with 11 takeaways this season. Eugene Asante leads Auburn with 35 total tackles, including two sacks and four tackles for loss. Senior cornerback Jaylin Simpson ranks second in FBS with four interceptions. Placekicker Alex McPherson is 5-for-5 on field goal attempts, with a long of 53 yards. Oscar Chapman, a 2022 Ray Guy Award semifinalist, is averaging 42.8 yards per punt, with five punts over 50 yards.

OLE MISS-AUBURN SERIES HISTORY
• Ole Miss and Auburn will meet for the 48th time in a series that started in 1928 ... Auburn leads the series, 35-11.
• The original record is 35-12 in favor of Auburn, with Ole Miss' win in 2012 vacated due to NCAA ruling.
• The Tigers lead 17-3 in Auburn and 13-3 in Oxford (13-4 in games played on the field).

REBS IN THE POLLS
• Ole Miss ranks No. 12 in the Coaches poll and No. 13 in the Associated Press poll for Week Eight.
• Dating back to 2021, Ole Miss has been ranked in the top 25 in 37 of the last 39 poll releases ... That includes a streak of 29 across 2021 and 2022, the longest streak since being ranked for 41 straight weeks from 2014-16.
• The SEC boasts six teams in the top 25 of both polls.
• Ole Miss is one of just six FBS teams with multiple AP Top 25 wins (Missouri, Notre Dame, Oregon St., Texas, Wash. St.).

HOT STARTS
Ole Miss is off to at least a 5-1 start through six games for the third straight season under head coach Lane Kiffin, joining a 5-1 start from the 2021 squad that ended 10-3 and with a trip to the Sugar Bowl, as well 2022's team that started off 7-0. This is the best such streak at Ole Miss since the late 1950s and early '60s, when the three-time national champion Rebels ripped off six such years in a row from 1957-62.

STINGY DEFENSE
The Landshark defense completely shut down the Arkansas running game on Oct. 7, putting together one of the best rushing defense performances at Ole Miss in nearly a decade. The Rebels held the Razorbacks to just 36 yards on the ground, the fewest yielded to an SEC opponent by Ole Miss since shutting out Tennessee to zero rushing yards back on Oct. 18, 2014. Overall, the Rebels gave up just 288 yards of total offense, their fewest against an SEC opponent since holding Vanderbilt to 264 on Oct. 5, 2019. Helping greatly was a ferocious backfield attack by the Rebels, who ended the night with a season-high five sacks for a loss of 33 yards and 10.0 total TFL for a loss of 44 yards. The Rebels have had at least four sacks in four of six games this season, as well as at least six tackles for loss in five of six games played.

WINNING THE TURNOVER BATTLE
Ole Miss leads the SEC and ranks 11th in the FBS in turnover margin, currently sitting at a total season margin of +6 and a per-game margin of +1.0. The Rebel defense has done its part with five interceptions and four fumble recoveries, but it's been the powerful -- yet careful -- Ole Miss offense that has helped pad that margin, currently leading the SEC and ranking tied for second nationally at just three turnovers all season. In addition to being one of the most efficient QB's in the nation, junior Jaxson Dart has also not made many mistakes, putting the Rebels in the SEC lead with just two interceptions this year (tied for sixth-fewest in the FBS).

FAST STARTS, STRONG FINISHES
The Rebel offense can get out to an explosive start, as evidenced by its 83-31 first quarter margin (13.8 to 5.2 per game), but Ole Miss has also closed games in powerful fashion, holding an almost identical scoring margin in the final frame at 82-37 (13.7 to 6.2). That extends to the entire second half as well, as Ole Miss holds a season advantage of 137-75 in the back two quarters. The Rebels own six quarters with at least 20 points this year, five of which have come in either the first or fourth quarters.

CAUSING MAYHEM
Ole Miss has notched at least 4.0 tackles for loss in each of its first six games, as well as at least 3.0 sacks in five of six contests, and have done so with a wide range of defenders getting in on the action. A total of 12 Rebels have contributed to a quarterback sack, while 21 have chipped in on a TFL. And all that mayhem is paying off, with five forced fumbles (including a Khari Coleman sack fumble returned for a TD by Jared Ivey vs. Tulane), five interceptions, 27 QB hurries, 24 pass breakups and a blocked field goal. In the Kiffin era, Ole Miss has recorded multiple sacks in 30 games, at least 5.0 tackles for loss in 28 games, and at least 4.0 sacks in 17 games. In games with at least 5.0 tackles for loss, Ole Miss is 19-9, and in games with at least 4.0 sacks, the Rebels are 9-3. This season, Ole Miss ranks third in the SEC in tackles for loss (No. 9 FBS) and fourth in sacks (No. 5 FBS).

MR. CONSISTENCY
Senior LB Ashanti Cistrunk has been a mainstay of the Ole Miss defense throughout his long career as a Rebel, as evidenced by his current streak of 54 consecutive games played -- which constitutes all 54 of his career games played. Cistrunk is among 143 active players nationally in the FBS to have played at least 54, and on Ole Miss' roster this year he is among three alongside transfers Zamari Walton and Teja Young, who both have also appeared in 54 career contests. Cistrunk is coming off perhaps the best game of his career against Arkansas, when he ended the night with a season-high nine tackles, 1.0 tackles for loss, one half-sack and a key interception returned 28 yards -- the second pick of his career. Cistrunk was named SEC Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts against the Razorbacks, helping lead the Rebel defense to a 27-20 victory on Oct. 7. In his Ole Miss career, Cistrunk has 172 total tackles (73 solo), 9.5 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, three forced fumbles and two interceptions. In addition to Cistrunk, Ole Miss' 2023 roster features five more with at least 150 career tackles: CB DeShawn Gaddie Jr. (155), LB Jeremiah Jean-Baptiste (173), LB Monty Montgomery (179), S Isheem Young (185) and S Teja Young (168).

DEFENSIVE NOTES
The Rebel defensive unit has been crucial to Ole Miss' success with timely big plays and big stops.

• CB Deantre Prince is Ole Miss' active career leader in interceptions with six.
• S John Saunders Jr. (79.9) and S Daijahn Anthony (77.8) are Ole Miss' top-two rated defenders per PFF.
• Anthony had a crucial forced fumble and the game-winning pass breakup vs. No. 12 LSU on Sept. 30.
• Six Rebels have multiple pass breakups, led by five each from Anthony and Saunders Jr., who both also have one INT.
• Eight different Rebels have had their hand in Ole Miss' four forced fumbles either on the force or recovery ... 12 Rebels have batted down a pass, and 13 have recorded at least one QB hurry.
• Ole Miss has returned its five interceptions this season for 101 yards, currently No. 4 in the SEC.
• LB Khari Coleman leads the SEC and ranks 11th in the FBS in active career tackles for loss (31.0)
• S Teja Young ranks second among FBS active career leaders with 222 career interception return yards, and he leads with four interception return touchdowns ... The FBS career record for INT return TDs is five (Jackie Walker, Tennessee, 1969-71).
• LB Ashanti Cistrunk has a season career-high of 2.5 sacks ... Cistrunk was named SEC Defensive Player of the Week following his nine-tackle performance against the Razorbacks that saw him intercept a pass and assist on a sack as well.
• S Trey Washington leads Ole Miss in tackles, averaging 7.0 per game (10th SEC) ... Washington was SEC Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 18 after notching a career-high 10 tackles and a forced fumble vs. Georgia Tech.
• DE Cedric Johnson recorded career sack No. 14.5 against Mercer … Johnson is Ole Miss' active career sacks leader.
• Johnson (14.5, T-35th) and LB Monty Montgomery (15.0, T-33rd) both rank within the FBS top-40 in active career sacks.
• LB Suntarine Perkins leads all SEC freshmen and ranks tied for third nationally among freshman with 3.5 sacks.
• DE Jared Ivey owns the lone defensive TD of the year for the Rebels, a key 26-yard fumble return at No. 22 Tulane.
• DE Isaac Ukwu has 3.0 sacks for a loss of 17 yards ... Combined with his career totals at FCS James Madison, he has 19.5.

HIGH-FLYING OFFENSE
Ole Miss currently possesses the SEC's second-best scoring offense at 41.7 points per game, good for No. 8 in the FBS heading into Week Eight action, as well as the conference's No. 3 overall offense at 489.3 yards per game. Impressively, the Rebels have done so against strong competition through six games, holding a strength of schedule ranking of 11 against a top-11 average of 54.6 on the scoring offense list and 61.7 on the total offense rankings. Helping spur on the offensive onslaught for the Rebels is its FBS No. 16 passing attack at 306.0 yards per game -- good for No. 4 in the SEC this season. Ole Miss has proven deadly both through the air and on the ground, though, as the Rebels are the lone FBS team with a 500-yard passing outing (524, vs. Mercer, No. 2 FBS) and a 300-yard rushing outing (317, vs. LSU, No. 25 FBS) this season. Furthermore, per PFF season grades, Ole Miss stands as one of just two schools nationally with a top-12 grade in both passing (6th, 90.4) and rushing (11th, 89.7) for 2023.

In the Kiffin era, the Rebel offense ranks among the most prolific in the nation, ranking second in the FBS in yards per game (508.2 ypg/42 games) and fourth in total yards (21,344 yards) since 2020. The Rebels have done it with a balanced attack over the last three years as well, as Ole Miss ranks alongside only Ohio State as the only two Power-5 teams with both a top-10 passing season (2020; No. 7) and a top-10 rushing season (2022; No. 3) since 2020.

PORTAL PRODUCTION
Ole Miss has been no stranger to the transfer portal, and it has paid huge dividends this season, with 2,124 of its 2,936 yards (72.3%) of total offense coming from transfer players. That doesn't include all 1,836 passing yards from all three of Ole Miss' three transfer quarterbacks, but it does include 608 of 1,100 rushing yards (55.3%), and 1,516 of 1,836 receiving yards (82.6%), as well as 21 of all 31 Rebel touchdowns (67.7%) this season.

DON'T BLINK
Ole Miss is once again running a lightning-quick offense in 2023, currently ranking as one of nine FBS schools at sub-23 seconds between plays at 22.3 per play. This season, Ole Miss owns seven scoring drives clocking in beneath the one-minute mark, including back-to-back opening drives against Mercer (51 seconds) and Tulane (48 seconds). The 51-second drive against Mercer was the fastest to open a season for Ole Miss since 2018, and the 28 first quarter points ranks as the most in available records since at least 1967. The 48-second debut against the Green Wave, meanwhile, was the fastest on any opening drive for the Rebels since finding the endzone in just 34 seconds against Liberty on Nov. 6, 2021. In the Kiffin era, Ole Miss is 23-5 when scoring first.

RACKING UP THE YARDS
Kiffin's dynamic Ole Miss offenses have single-handedly dismantled the Rebel record books, recording three of the top-five offensive seasons in school history since 2020. Leading the way is the 2020 squad that ended the season ranked No. 3 in total offense nationally at an Ole Miss record 555.5 yards per game (5,555 yards). His 2021 team ranks fifth at 492.5 yards per game (6,402 yards), and last year the Rebels broke into the top-five again, this time notching the fourth-best season ever at 496.4 yards per game (6,453 yards). Impressively, Kiffin's Ole Miss teams have done so with a balanced offensive attack, ranking seventh in the FBS in passing in 2020 (344.9 ypg) before shifting toward the running game in 2021 with the No. 12 ground game (217.6 ypg) before 2022's single-season school record rushing attack of 3,336 yards (256.6) led the SEC and ranked No. 3 in the FBS behind only the service academies.

With those big single-season numbers come monster single-game numbers as well. Kiffin owns 22 games during his Ole Miss tenure with at least 600 yards of total offense, as opposed to just 16 times total from the beginning of the Ole Miss football program in 1893 until Kiffin's arrival in 2020. At the 700-yard plateau, Kiffin's Rebels own four of the six total 700-yard games in Ole Miss history, as well as five of the top-seven performances all-time.

BIG PLAY POTENTIAL
The Rebels continue to be one of the best teams in the country in explosive plays, currently ranking tied for sixth among all FBS teams with 45 plays of 20 yards or more this season. In total, Ole Miss has tallied 106 plays of 10 or more yards this year, ranking tied for 22nd among all FBS schools. The Rebels average 17.7 such plays per game.

THROWIN' DARTS
Junior QB Jaxson Dart has been one of the top signal callers nationally this season with both his arm and his legs, ranking second in the SEC and seventh nationally at his 323.8 yards of total offense per game. As Dart goes, so have the Rebels so far this season, with his SEC No. 3 and FBS No. 22 points responsible per game clip of 16.0 helping spur the Rebels to the No. 2 scoring offense in the conference at 41.7 points per game. Dart ranks second in the SEC in yards per completion at 15.3 (No. 9 FBS), and ranks within the FBS top-30 in yards per attempt at 9.8 (No. 9), passing efficiency at 167.8 (No. 12) and passing yards per game at 273.0 (No. 26). Dart has been especially effective in the first quarters so far this season, standing at 36-of-47 for 616 yards and six touchdowns in the opening frame. That includes a blistering 11-for-11 stretch to open the season against Mercer, making him just the seventh Ole Miss quarterback to ever throw 11 consecutive completions and the best such streak since Matt Corral set the school record at 19 in a row at Vanderbilt in 2020. Dart is starting to climb several Ole Miss career lists, as he now ranks seventh all-time in career 300-yard passing games (4), eighth in passing touchdowns (32), 11th in total offense (5,528) and 12th in passing yards (4,612). In his overall career combining totals from his freshman season at USC in 2021, Dart owns 5,965 yards passing, 6,924 yards of total offense, 959 yards rushing (916 at Ole Miss), and 41 passing touchdowns.

CALLING HIS OWN NUMBER
Junior QB Jaxson Dart had a career day running the ball against Georgia Tech on Sept. 16, and did so with one of the longest rushes ever by a Rebel signal caller. Dart ended with a career high 136 yards and two rushing touchdowns on 14, highlighted by a massive 68 yard scamper in the second quarter. That run nearly doubled up his previous career long of 36 against Troy last season, and all-time in Ole Miss history it ranks as the fourth-longest ever by a QB. On the ground, Dart ranks as one of the top rushing QBs nationally, ranking second in the SEC among signal-callers in both yards per carry at 4.8 (FBS No. 9) and yards per game at 50.3 (FBS No. 17). Dart is set to eclipse both the 1,000 yard rushing mark for his career overall (959), as well as during his Ole Miss career (916).

NOSE FOR THE ENDZONE
Ole Miss has two well-seasoned running backs in sophomore Quinshon Judkins and senior Ulysses Bentley IV, who stand as just one of four duos in the FBS with at least 20 career rushing touchdowns. Judkins and Bentley both crossed the goal line for the 22nd times in their careers against Arkansas on Oct. 7, putting them alongside other duos from LSU, San Jose State and USC. Combined, the Rebel duo of Judkins and Bentley owns 3,917 career yards and 44 total touchdowns on the ground.

GROUND & POUND
Sophomore RB Quinshon Judkins broke out against the No. 12 LSU defense, ending the day with 177 yards on 33 carries and two total TDs against the Tigers. That marked the ninth 100-yard game in just 18 career games played, as well as his third career 150-yard outing -- with his other two last year being a 214-yard explosion at Arkansas, and a 205-yard effort at Texas A&M (making his 177 yards vs. LSU his most in front of a home crowd). Judkins is marching his way up several all-time lists at Ole Miss, as he is currently tied for fourth in career 100-yard rushing games (9), tied for fifth in career rushing touchdowns (22), eighth in career all-purpose touchdowns (24), and ninth in career rushing yards (2,010). Judkins is coming off a historic freshman campaign in 2022 that saw him break several Ole Miss records, including the single-season rushing mark. Judkins was a consensus first team selection on all the Preseason All-America teams and All-SEC teams, and was selected to the Maxwell, Walter Camp and Doak Walker Award watch lists.

WIDE-OPEN WATKINS
Senior WR Jordan Watkins has been a big-play threat throughout his two-year tenure as a Rebel, and he's been off to a dynamite start as Ole Miss' top all-purpose option this season. He currently leads the Rebels and ranks fourth in the SEC in receiving yards per game at 89.3 (No. 23 FBS), fifth in receptions per game at 6.0 (No. 27 FBS), as well as ninth in the conference at 102.2 all-purpose yards per game. Watkins has eclipsed the century mark receiving in three games this season, including a career-high 119 yards against Georgia Tech, and he has broken loose for several massive plays. Watkins leads all Rebels with 17 plays of at least 10 yards, including eight of at least 20 yards, four of at least 30 and three of the top-four long plays for Ole Miss this season: his 70-yard punt return touchdown against Mercer, his 68-yard TD reception against Georgia Tech, and his 63-yard score through the air against LSU. Watkins also had four receptions of 30 yards last season, including a 61-yard catch at Vanderbilt. This season, his 70-yard punt return TD ranks third longest in the SEC (No. 11 FBS), and he is one of two nationally to have both a 70-yard punt return TD and a reception of at least 59 yards.

QUADRUPLE THREAT
Louisiana native Tre Harris has had a nose for the endzone in just two games as a Rebel, highlighted by the game of his life against Mercer on Sept. 2. Against the Bears, Harris wowed the Vaught-Hemingway faithful by finding the endzone on each of his first three catches as a Rebel, which tied the school record and helped the lightning-quick Ole Miss offense get up early in its eventual 73-7 blowout win. Harris tacked on a fourth touchdown reception in the fourth quarter, in the process breaking the school record and becoming just the 22nd player in SEC history to haul in at least four touchdown receptions in a single game. Harris ended the day as Ole Miss' top receiver, nabbing six catches for 133 yards and his record-breaking four trips to the endzone. Harris is no stranger to the multi-TD effort, having caught three touchdown passes against Rice last October while a member of the Louisiana Tech football team. Harris -- a preseason Biletnikoff Award watch list member -- owns a career line of 123 receptions, 1,884 yards and 20 touchdowns -- 16 of which have come within the last calendar year after a 10 TD season with the Bulldogs in 2022. In 2023, Harris is still the only receiver in the SEC and one of just two in the FBS with four touchdown receptions in a single game.

BACK IN ACTION
Senior transfer WR Zakhari Franklin made his Ole Miss debut at No. 12 Alabama on Sept. 23, starting and hauling in one catch for 16 yards. This preseason, Franklin was one of two Rebels named to the Biletnikoff Award watch list alongside Tre Harris, and with good reason. Despite missing the first three games of 2023, Franklin still ranks among the top active receivers in the FBS, as his 37 career receiving touchdowns still leads all active FBS receivers, and his 3,371 career yards ranks second only to Arizona's Jacob Cowing (4,045). Franklin has also hauled in a reception in 48 consecutive games played, ranking only behind Coastal Carolina's Sam Pinckney (51) and Cowing (51). In 46 career games for UTSA, Franklin rewrote their record books en route to two first team All-Conference USA selections and an Honorable Mention All-America nod by Phil Steele in 2022. Franklin has notched 13 career 100-yard receiving games, and in 2022 was tied for second nationally in receiving touchdowns with 15. Franklin was also part of the Biletnikoff watch list in 2022.

DEADLY DUO
Wideouts Zakhari Franklin and Tre Harris, both Biletnikoff Award watch list members this preseason, are the lone teammates in the FBS to rank within the active career receiving touchdowns top-15 list, with Franklin's 37 career scores leading all active FBS receivers, and Harris' 20 ranking tied for 13th. Combined, they own a dazzling career line of 387 receptions for 5,255 yards and 57 touchdowns.

DAYLIGHT FOR DAYTON
Senior WR Dayton Wade is off to a career-best start in 2023 as one of Ole Miss' top deep-play threats. At 390 yards on 27 receptions, Wade has already passed his prior high in yards (309) and has tied his prior best in catches (27) -- both recorded in 2022, his first season at Ole Miss after three at WKU from 2019-21. Wade has had at least 64 yards receiving in each four of six games, and he leads all Rebels with four receptions of at least 40 yards. Nationally, he is among just 22 FBS receivers with at least four catches of 40 yards, as well as one of just six in the SEC.

LIGHT 'EM UP
There haven't been any Swayze Showers at the Vaught, but that hasn't stopped the explosive Ole Miss offense from being big time home run hitters through this season. On the year, the Rebels are among just 12 FBS teams averaging at least seven yards per play, currently sitting 10th at 7.01. Of those 12, Ole Miss stands alongside just New Mexico State (16.17) and Washington (15.35) with at least 15 yards per completion, with the Rebels currently ranking eighth in the FBS at 15.30.

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Players Mentioned

Daijahn Anthony

Ulysses Bentley IV

Ashanti Cistrunk

Khari Coleman

Jaxson Dart

Zakhari Franklin

DeShawn Gaddie Jr.

Tre Harris

Jared Ivey

Jeremiah Jean-Baptiste

Cedric Johnson

Quinshon Judkins

Monty Montgomery

Suntarine Perkins

Deantre Prince

John Saunders Jr.

Isaac Ukwu

Dayton Wade

Zamari Walton

Trey Washington

Jordan Watkins

Isheem Young

Teja Young

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