Ole Miss Ramps Up for Spring Football

By Adam Brown
Sports Editor
adam.brown@hottytoddy.com

Ole Miss football began spring practice on Tuesday in preparation for the upcoming 2021 season.

Coach Lane Kiffin meet with members of the media following the first practice. Due to the weather, Ole Miss practiced inside the Manning Center on one field.

“Excited to get on the field,” Kiffin said. “As we know, we never had a spring before. It’s a really good opportunity for these guys, all the returners. Very few players are not here from last year’s roster.”

Ole Miss has 14 players who have joined mid-year playing in spring ball.

“A lot of new people in there,” Kiffin said. “It is great to have for spring. I want to say 12 of the 14 are defensive players, and a lot of those in the back end. Creates a lot of competition. “

According to Kiffin, the Rebels will be without Casey Kelly, Jerrion Ealy, Dalen Gill and Demarco Williams during spring practices due to injuries.

Kiffin and his staff intend to use the spring season as a chance to experiment with the placement of players on the field.

“This is an opportunity to end up playing guys in a number of different spots sometimes, especially defensively,” Kiffin said.

As they enter into the 2021 season, the Rebels are coming off of a 5-5 season (which had an altered schedule due to COVID-19) with a 26-20 win over Indiana in the Outback Bowl.

“It’s good to have some energy around, and with that comes expectations as a team and as individuals, especially like the quarterback coming back,” Kiffin said. “I’m sure that there will be a lot of preseason attention on that.”

The Rebels quarterback Matt Corral is returning after throwing for 3,337 yards in 2020 with 29 touchdown passes. 

“Just building on what we did last year,” Corral said. “We now know what we have on the offensive side of the ball, and just growing on that.”

Corral is receiving a lot of internet hype as some fans and experts predict that he will become a candidate for the Heisman Trophy and All-American honors.

However, Corral made clear that he is not letting the praise go to his head.

“I do not acknowledge it,” Corral said. “I just try to focus on being the best teammate/player I can be.”