Led by QB Kelly, Ole Miss vying for SEC crown

OXFORD, Miss.—A big chunk of Mississippi star’s power from last season is gone, off to the NFL after helping push the program into the upper tier of the Southeastern Conference.

But the Rebels who remain are pretty good, too.

And that’s exactly the reason Ole Miss feels it can be even better than last season, when the team won 10 games and took home the Sugar Bowl trophy for the first time since 1970.

But players and coaches say there is plenty more to prove for a program that hasn’t won a Southeastern Conference title since 1963.

“We could talk a long time on that one,” Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze said. “I assure you there’s motivation.”

The Rebels do have one legitimate star still on the roster. Senior quarterback Chad Kelly is viewed as a long-shot Heisman Trophy candidate after throwing for more than 4,000 yards and running for 500 more in his first season as the team’s starter.

But Ole Miss must replace standouts like offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil, receiver Laquon Treadwell and defensive tackle Robert Nkemdiche, who were all selected in the first round of the NFL draft in April.

Ole Miss needs to be ready right away. The Rebels have a brutal September schedule that starts with a neutral site game against Florida State on Sept. 5 in Orlando. There are also back-toback home games against Alabama and Georgia later in the month.