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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Football Practice Report: Week 13
11/20/2024 | Football
Presented by Oxford Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine
OXFORD, Miss. – The second bye week hit at just the right time for No. 9 Ole Miss football. Coming off an emotional win over then-No. 3 Georgia, the Rebels had a chance to rest, regroup and most importantly, recover as they look to protect their spot in the College Football Playoff as they hit the road for an SEC matchup with Florida on Saturday.
Head coach Lane Kiffin held his Monday press conference to recap the bye week and look ahead at Florida. Jordan Watkins, TJ Dottery, John Saunders Jr., Ulysses Bentley IV and Cayden Lee met with the media as well, which can be found below.
Healthy Again
Ole Miss will need all the help it can get with two tough conference tests to close out the season in a six-day span: a road trip to The Swamp on Saturday and the Egg Bowl the following Friday. Fortunately, the second bye week hit at just the right time, and Ole Miss is hopeful to once again have the services of the best receiver in college football, Tre Harris.
"This has been a really good time period here for us, coming off of playing really well lately," Kiffin said. "I think we are peaking at the right time. It's exciting to be playing well at the end of the season, and I think we're getting stronger. Tre now looking like he's ready to go, knowing we haven't had him for three-and-a-half games, and over that time, I think Jaxson Dart has led the country in passing without him. Really exciting to get the best receiver in the country back."
The Rebels are also back to full depth on the offensive front, and the running game could receive a boost as well if Logan Diggs is able to make his Ole Miss debut. Regardless of who is available, the Rebels know they'll have to continue to play like they've played the last two weeks to earn their spot in the CFP.
"This is the first time the O-line, first and second string, has been fully healthy and practicing," Kiffin said. "Logan Diggs is doing the most he's done. Then we had a lot of guys playing hurt—Cayden Lee, JJ Pegues, really Princely Umanmielen is still just coming back. A lot of times, at the end of the year, you're struggling health-wise, to be in the best shape we've been all year long. Now we have to build on that and not just feel good about how we've played but come and play even better."
Dynamic Attack
One of Kiffin's biggest objectives in building the Ole Miss football program was establishing elite depth, and the results show he's done just that, particularly in the receiver room. Most offenses would sputter with the loss of the nation's best receiver, but the Rebels found a way to continue to flourish as receivers Jordan Watkins, Cayden Lee, Antwane Wells Jr., as well as tight ends Caden Prieskorn and Dae'Quan Wright, have all stepped forward in different moments to keep the offense humming.
"I think we've stepped up a lot. You see Cayden Lee making big-time plays. You see Juice with a big-time touchdown against Georgia that was really needed, and myself making plays as well," Watkins said. "Having Tre back is just going to add on to the depth and the explosiveness of the offense. It adds a dynamic feel out there knowing anybody can make plays. Us being able to share the ball everywhere has really opened our offense and made it dynamic."
Harris has missed each of the last three full games, as well as the second half against both LSU and South Carolina, but he still leads the SEC and ranks No. 5 nationally with 987 receiving yards. His 8.4 receptions per game are good for No. 3 nationally, while Watkins ranks No. 8 with 21.3 yards per reception. Harris' reuniting with Watkins, along with the rest of the weapons at receiver and tight end, will once again give Ole Miss arguably the nation's best pass-catching corps.
"Having him back is going to be big-time for us if he is able to go on Saturday," Watkins said. "He adds big-time playmaking ability like everybody else in the room. From anywhere on the field, we can score. Having him out there is going to change the way they play defense."
TJ on DJ
The Florida offense received a boost last weekend with the return of quarterback DJ Lagway. The top QB and No. 3 overall prospect in the 2024 recruiting class, Lagway returned from injury last week to lead the Gators to a win over LSU, and TJ Dottery and the Rebel defense are preparing for all he brings to the table this weekend.
"I think he's very athletic, that's what allows him to be so explosive," Dottery said. "He has a very nice arm. He gets the ball out to his reads. That's what allows him to make plays on his feet—the threat of him being able to throw the ball and run."
Lagway is a big-bodied QB at 6-foot-3, 239 pounds. Ole Miss has contended with similar big, athletic QBs in South Carolina's LaNorris Sellers (6-foot-3, 242 pounds) and Arkansas' Taylen Green (6-foot-6, 230 pounds), and will take a similar approach as it looks to relentlessly pressure, but also keep contain on the rising star in Gainesville.
"It's kind of the same mentality," Dottery said. "I think he stands out in his own category. I think the kid's really good and has a lot of potential. If I had to say somebody, probably a little of South Carolina's quarterback in that sense. We just have to contain him and keep him in the pocket the best we can."
Stay Connected
Stay up to date with all the latest Ole Miss football news and content! Subscribe to The Sip, the official newsletter of Rebel football, and we'll drop the best Ole Miss football stories, videos and social media content to your inbox each week.
Update today to the all-new version of the Ole Miss Sports app, presented by Renasant Bank! The new app will serve as a dynamic hub for Rebel gameday content, including ticketing, parking, schedules, shopping for official Ole Miss merchandise and much more. Click here for more info or to download.
Head coach Lane Kiffin held his Monday press conference to recap the bye week and look ahead at Florida. Jordan Watkins, TJ Dottery, John Saunders Jr., Ulysses Bentley IV and Cayden Lee met with the media as well, which can be found below.
Healthy Again
Ole Miss will need all the help it can get with two tough conference tests to close out the season in a six-day span: a road trip to The Swamp on Saturday and the Egg Bowl the following Friday. Fortunately, the second bye week hit at just the right time, and Ole Miss is hopeful to once again have the services of the best receiver in college football, Tre Harris.
"This has been a really good time period here for us, coming off of playing really well lately," Kiffin said. "I think we are peaking at the right time. It's exciting to be playing well at the end of the season, and I think we're getting stronger. Tre now looking like he's ready to go, knowing we haven't had him for three-and-a-half games, and over that time, I think Jaxson Dart has led the country in passing without him. Really exciting to get the best receiver in the country back."
The Rebels are also back to full depth on the offensive front, and the running game could receive a boost as well if Logan Diggs is able to make his Ole Miss debut. Regardless of who is available, the Rebels know they'll have to continue to play like they've played the last two weeks to earn their spot in the CFP.
"This is the first time the O-line, first and second string, has been fully healthy and practicing," Kiffin said. "Logan Diggs is doing the most he's done. Then we had a lot of guys playing hurt—Cayden Lee, JJ Pegues, really Princely Umanmielen is still just coming back. A lot of times, at the end of the year, you're struggling health-wise, to be in the best shape we've been all year long. Now we have to build on that and not just feel good about how we've played but come and play even better."
Dynamic Attack
One of Kiffin's biggest objectives in building the Ole Miss football program was establishing elite depth, and the results show he's done just that, particularly in the receiver room. Most offenses would sputter with the loss of the nation's best receiver, but the Rebels found a way to continue to flourish as receivers Jordan Watkins, Cayden Lee, Antwane Wells Jr., as well as tight ends Caden Prieskorn and Dae'Quan Wright, have all stepped forward in different moments to keep the offense humming.
"I think we've stepped up a lot. You see Cayden Lee making big-time plays. You see Juice with a big-time touchdown against Georgia that was really needed, and myself making plays as well," Watkins said. "Having Tre back is just going to add on to the depth and the explosiveness of the offense. It adds a dynamic feel out there knowing anybody can make plays. Us being able to share the ball everywhere has really opened our offense and made it dynamic."
Harris has missed each of the last three full games, as well as the second half against both LSU and South Carolina, but he still leads the SEC and ranks No. 5 nationally with 987 receiving yards. His 8.4 receptions per game are good for No. 3 nationally, while Watkins ranks No. 8 with 21.3 yards per reception. Harris' reuniting with Watkins, along with the rest of the weapons at receiver and tight end, will once again give Ole Miss arguably the nation's best pass-catching corps.
"Having him back is going to be big-time for us if he is able to go on Saturday," Watkins said. "He adds big-time playmaking ability like everybody else in the room. From anywhere on the field, we can score. Having him out there is going to change the way they play defense."
TJ on DJ
The Florida offense received a boost last weekend with the return of quarterback DJ Lagway. The top QB and No. 3 overall prospect in the 2024 recruiting class, Lagway returned from injury last week to lead the Gators to a win over LSU, and TJ Dottery and the Rebel defense are preparing for all he brings to the table this weekend.
"I think he's very athletic, that's what allows him to be so explosive," Dottery said. "He has a very nice arm. He gets the ball out to his reads. That's what allows him to make plays on his feet—the threat of him being able to throw the ball and run."
Lagway is a big-bodied QB at 6-foot-3, 239 pounds. Ole Miss has contended with similar big, athletic QBs in South Carolina's LaNorris Sellers (6-foot-3, 242 pounds) and Arkansas' Taylen Green (6-foot-6, 230 pounds), and will take a similar approach as it looks to relentlessly pressure, but also keep contain on the rising star in Gainesville.
"It's kind of the same mentality," Dottery said. "I think he stands out in his own category. I think the kid's really good and has a lot of potential. If I had to say somebody, probably a little of South Carolina's quarterback in that sense. We just have to contain him and keep him in the pocket the best we can."
Stay Connected
Stay up to date with all the latest Ole Miss football news and content! Subscribe to The Sip, the official newsletter of Rebel football, and we'll drop the best Ole Miss football stories, videos and social media content to your inbox each week.
Update today to the all-new version of the Ole Miss Sports app, presented by Renasant Bank! The new app will serve as a dynamic hub for Rebel gameday content, including ticketing, parking, schedules, shopping for official Ole Miss merchandise and much more. Click here for more info or to download.
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