College Football Recruiting Enthusiasm Returns to Ole Miss in 2021 Class
Written by Ryan Wright
Twitter: @RyanWrightRNG
For a passionate fan base, following the recruiting process for Ole Miss is like being out on the ocean with no recourse but to follow the ebb and flow. Under former head coach Matt Luke, the Rebels did alright along the recruiting trail with a 2018 class finishing 32nd and a 2019 haul landing at No. 22. In Lane Kiffin’s first cycle in Oxford, 18 players were attached, four four-stars and 14 three-stars, landing at No. 34. The enthusiasm for Ole Miss football seems to be renewed in the 2021 class after the Rebels’ offense was unstoppable during the 2020 campaign.
After six conference wins over the last three seasons, watching the Rebels post five victories in a 10-game SEC only schedule has Mississippi fans fired up, and for good reason. The offense was one of the best in the nation averaging 39.2 points per game behind the nation’s seventh-best passing attack (344.9 ypg). That has translated onto the recruiting trail with a class currently inside the Top 20.
With 24 commitments to the 2021 class, Ole Miss is sitting pretty with six four-stars and 18 three-star prospects. Perhaps the most amazing part of the haul, 15 players are already on campus as early enrollees. Of the 15, this includes five of their four-star players. Although they may be young, but talented, in that mix includes safeties Tysheem Johson and Dink Jackson along with corner Markevious Brown. Seeking to lock up a spot behind 2021 preseason All-SEC candidate Matt Corral is Luke Altmyer out of Starkville.
Another positive for Ole Miss fans, Kiffin’s desire to improve the defense. As good as Mississippi was scoring the ball, their defense was equally as good allowing others to put it in the end zone giving way to 38.3 points per game, ranked 117th out of the 127 FBS teams playing in 2020. The class has five attached to the defensive line and at least seven ready to play in the secondary.
One omission thus far in the current haul is at running back. Mississippi has two very talented junior backs in Jerrion Ealy and Snoop Conner with sophomore Henry Parrish Jr. pushing behind them. But what happens in 2022?
Mississippi’s class ranks No. 19 nationally, seventh in the SEC. National Signing Day arrives on Wednesday, Feb. 3.
Update: Ole Miss jumped up a spot in the recruiting rankings after signing four-star defensive tackle Tywone Malone from Bergen Catholic, the highest-rated player (No. 62) to sign with Mississippi in the 2021 cycle. The New Jersey product signed with the Rebels as a two-sport athlete ready to put on the spikes for Mississippi’s baseball team in spring 2022.
2021 Ole Miss Recruiting Class
DT Tywone Malone – Bergen Catholic (NJ) – 4-Star
QB Luke Altmyer – Starkville (MS) – 4-Star – enrolled
TE Hudson Wolfe – Hardin Country – 4-Star (TN) – enrolled
DB Tysheem Johnson – Neumann Goretti (PA) – 4-Star – enrolled
DB Dink Jackson – Eau Gallie (FL) – 4-Star – enrolled – 4-Star
CB Markevious Brown – IMG Academy (FL) – enrolled – 4-Star
CB MJ Daniels – George County (MS) – enrolled
ATH Kydrich Breedlove – Pearl-Cohn (TN) – enrolled
DT Isaiah Iton – Hutchinson JUCO (KS) – enrolled
DT Jamond Gordon – East Mississippi JUCO (MS) – enrolled
WR Brandon Buckhaulter – Hartfield (MS) – enrolled
WR Qua Davis – Itawamba JUCO (MS) – enrolled
CB Demarko Williams – Westlake (GA) – enrolled
DB Elijah Sabbatini – Biloxi (MS) – enrolled
CB Trey Washington – Hewitt-Trussville (AL) – enrolled
OT Micah Pettus – James Clemens (AL) – enrolled
WR Bralon Brown – St. Thomas Aquinas (FL) – 4-Star – signed
WR JJ Henry – McKinney North (TX) – signed
OT Jayden Williams – Conway (AR) – signed
DE Demarcus Smith – Parker (AL) – signed
OT Erick Cade – Braswell (TX) – signed
DE Jibran Hawkins – Discovery (GA) – signed
OT Cedrick Nicely – Gainesville (GA) – signed
DT Taleeq Robbins – Imhotep (PA) – signed
K Caden Costa – Manderville (LA) – signed
Photo credit: AL.com; Lane Kiffin Ole Miss sidelines (2020)