.png&width=32&height=32&type=webp)
The University of Mississippi Athletics
Football Practice Report: Final Week
4/17/2025 | Football
OXFORD, Miss. – It's the final week of spring practice, and finals week on campus is just around the corner as Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss football wrap up spring ball with a scrimmage this Saturday, and the Rebels then wrap up the spring semester in the classroom.
Lane Kiffin, Austin Simmons, De'Zhaun Stribling and Delano Townsend met with the media for the final time on Thursday, which can be found below in this week's practice report, presented by Oxford Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine.
Last Call
After a month of work on the practice fields, Ole Miss will conclude its spring season with one last scrimmage on Saturday. While Kiffin and his staff continue to evaluate the players in the building, the portal window has opened, giving them an opportunity to add more talent and depth before the fall.
"Wrapping up spring here. Second-to-last practice. One more Saturday. I really like the guys' competitiveness, how hard they're working out there. A lot of battles for positions. It's been really good. Excited for Saturday," Kiffin said. "Unusual timing with portal, and we're still in spring practice, kind of like the season, what happens. A lot of stuff going on there with visitors here while we're still practicing. Our own guys obviously in conversations about that stuff, so it is what it is."
The final scrimmage will give the Rebels one final opportunity to put their best on film and establish their roles before the fall camp crucible. Kiffin hopes that will create a sense of urgency that results in his team's best showing of the spring.
"Just seeing how individual players finish, knowing this is their last shot for a while to put their resume on film," Kiffin said. "We'll see how they react to that."
Winning Mentality
De'Zhaun Stribling was Oklahoma State's top receiver a year ago, racking up a team-best 882 yards on 52 receptions, including six touchdowns. That came in a disappointing season as a team for the Cowboys, who opened the season ranked No. 17 but finished 3-9, including 0-9 in Big 12 Conference play. Now, he's looking to have another big season and help the winning ways in Oxford roll on.
"Just really trying to go somewhere where I can catch the ball, score touchdowns and win games," Stribling said. "We have a long history of great receivers coming in, winning a lot of games, putting up a lot of points, so I just wanted to be a part of something like that."
At 6-foot-2, 200 pounds, Stribling looks like he'll continue in the footsteps of other big, physical, athletic receivers like recent Rebels Jonathan Mingo and Tre Harris. Kiffin and Co. had a tall task of replacing Harris, Jordan Watkins and Antwane Wells Jr., but thus far, the additions of Stribling, Harrison Wallace III, Caleb Odom and others have the Rebel coaches bullish on their receiver room.
"Very competitive. Really tough. Kind of Jonathan Mingo-ish. Strong, physical," Kiffin said of Stribling. "That was a huge concern going into the offseason, losing so much in that room. I thought we did a really good job in that and turned the room over really well and added some really good players in there. Really pleased with that room. Those guys are working really hard, and the culture of the room too."
Leading Role
Austin Simmons could've been pitching for a top-10 college baseball team this spring, but the former dual-sport athlete made the difficult decision to become a one-sport athlete to focus on taking over the QB1 role for the Ole Miss football team. So far, he's enjoying being able to put his all into just one sport.
"It's very different. Something I'm not used to. I've been doing the flip-flopping thing since high school," Simmons said. "It's been a great feeling, just having to worry about one thing. Just going forward and build and progress on becoming a better quarterback."
It's not very often a team can lose a three-year starter and First Team All-SEC quarterback like Jaxson Dart, then already in spring ball, have little concern about who is leading their offense. Simmons isn't too concerned, though, regarding labels like "QB1," but instead, he's focused on earning the label "national champion."
"Football is football, at the end of the day," Simmons said. "Regardless of if I'm the starting quarterback, if I'm the backup quarterback, it doesn't matter. We're still playing football. We're preparing for one thing. We always have one goal: to win a national championship."
Stay Connected
Stay up to date with all the latest Ole Miss football news and content this offseason! 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.
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.
Lane Kiffin, Austin Simmons, De'Zhaun Stribling and Delano Townsend met with the media for the final time on Thursday, which can be found below in this week's practice report, presented by Oxford Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine.
Last Call
After a month of work on the practice fields, Ole Miss will conclude its spring season with one last scrimmage on Saturday. While Kiffin and his staff continue to evaluate the players in the building, the portal window has opened, giving them an opportunity to add more talent and depth before the fall.
"Wrapping up spring here. Second-to-last practice. One more Saturday. I really like the guys' competitiveness, how hard they're working out there. A lot of battles for positions. It's been really good. Excited for Saturday," Kiffin said. "Unusual timing with portal, and we're still in spring practice, kind of like the season, what happens. A lot of stuff going on there with visitors here while we're still practicing. Our own guys obviously in conversations about that stuff, so it is what it is."
The final scrimmage will give the Rebels one final opportunity to put their best on film and establish their roles before the fall camp crucible. Kiffin hopes that will create a sense of urgency that results in his team's best showing of the spring.
"Just seeing how individual players finish, knowing this is their last shot for a while to put their resume on film," Kiffin said. "We'll see how they react to that."
Winning Mentality
De'Zhaun Stribling was Oklahoma State's top receiver a year ago, racking up a team-best 882 yards on 52 receptions, including six touchdowns. That came in a disappointing season as a team for the Cowboys, who opened the season ranked No. 17 but finished 3-9, including 0-9 in Big 12 Conference play. Now, he's looking to have another big season and help the winning ways in Oxford roll on.
"Just really trying to go somewhere where I can catch the ball, score touchdowns and win games," Stribling said. "We have a long history of great receivers coming in, winning a lot of games, putting up a lot of points, so I just wanted to be a part of something like that."
At 6-foot-2, 200 pounds, Stribling looks like he'll continue in the footsteps of other big, physical, athletic receivers like recent Rebels Jonathan Mingo and Tre Harris. Kiffin and Co. had a tall task of replacing Harris, Jordan Watkins and Antwane Wells Jr., but thus far, the additions of Stribling, Harrison Wallace III, Caleb Odom and others have the Rebel coaches bullish on their receiver room.
"Very competitive. Really tough. Kind of Jonathan Mingo-ish. Strong, physical," Kiffin said of Stribling. "That was a huge concern going into the offseason, losing so much in that room. I thought we did a really good job in that and turned the room over really well and added some really good players in there. Really pleased with that room. Those guys are working really hard, and the culture of the room too."
Leading Role
Austin Simmons could've been pitching for a top-10 college baseball team this spring, but the former dual-sport athlete made the difficult decision to become a one-sport athlete to focus on taking over the QB1 role for the Ole Miss football team. So far, he's enjoying being able to put his all into just one sport.
"It's very different. Something I'm not used to. I've been doing the flip-flopping thing since high school," Simmons said. "It's been a great feeling, just having to worry about one thing. Just going forward and build and progress on becoming a better quarterback."
It's not very often a team can lose a three-year starter and First Team All-SEC quarterback like Jaxson Dart, then already in spring ball, have little concern about who is leading their offense. Simmons isn't too concerned, though, regarding labels like "QB1," but instead, he's focused on earning the label "national champion."
"Football is football, at the end of the day," Simmons said. "Regardless of if I'm the starting quarterback, if I'm the backup quarterback, it doesn't matter. We're still playing football. We're preparing for one thing. We always have one goal: to win a national championship."
Stay Connected
Stay up to date with all the latest Ole Miss football news and content this offseason! 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.
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.
Players Mentioned
QB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
TE
/ Football
QB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
OL
/ Football
WR
/ Football
WR
/ Football
WR
/ FootballThe Season: Arkansas (2025)
Wednesday, September 17
PRESSER | Wydett Williams Jr. - Week 4 vs. Tulane (09-16-25)
Tuesday, September 16
PRESSER | Diego Pounds - Week 4 vs. Tulane (09-16-25)
Tuesday, September 16
PRESSER | Dae'Quan Wright - Week 4 vs Tulane (09-16-25)
Tuesday, September 16