Scouting the Opponent: Three questions about Ole Miss

SCHOOL: Ole Miss

HEAD COACH: Lane Kiffin (34-15, 4 years; 95-49 overall)

2023 RECORD: 11-2 overall, 6-2 (2nd in SEC West)

RETURNING STARTERS: Offense – 7; Defense – 5, Special Teams – 2

PLAYERS TO WATCH: QB Jaxon Dart, WRJordan Watkins, WR Tre Harris, TE Caden Prieskorn, OG Nate Kalepo, DT Walter Nolen, OLB/DE Princely Umanmielen, DE Jared Ivey, S John Saunders

VERSUS GEORGIA: November 9 (Vaught Hemmingway Stadium)

The Bulldogs certainly opened Lane Kiffin's eyes.

Ole Miss was ranked in the top 10 when it rolled into Athens last year, only to be thumped 52-17.

After the game, Kiffin told reporters "We have to recruit at a higher level ... we have to coach better," he said.

In an attempt to close the gap, Kiffin hit the transfer portal harder than arguably any school in the country, plugging gaps with athletes, many of them former four- and five-star performers.

Will the moves work?

On paper, the Rebels may at least equal last year's 11-1 campaign. But will they close the gap on the Bulldogs? Will they bond as a unit?

We'll see soon enough.

Judkins surprised people when he placed his name in the NCAA transfer portal, ultimately matriculating to Ohio State.

So, how much will his loss hurt the Rebels?

Judkins was a two-time All-SEC selection, but Ole Miss feels it will be in good shape with the trio of Ulysses Bentley IV, along with transfers Henry Parrish Jr. and Jacory Croskey-Merritt.

Bentley rushed for 540 yards as a junior last year for Ole Miss, while Parrish - whose career began in Oxford - is back as a transfer from Miami, where he ran for over 600 yards in each of the past two seasons.

Croskey-Merritt, meanwhile, comes over from New Mexico, where he ran for over 1,000 yards and scored 17 touchdowns in 2023.

Ole Miss jumped to sixth from ninth in the SEC in total defense last year, despite Georgia racking up 611 yards of total offense in Athens.

The Bulldogs weren't the only ones.

To improve, the Rebels added former five-star defensive tackle Walter Nolan from Texas A&M, and former Florida defensive end Princely Umanmielen to go along with returning defensive line starters Jared Ivey and J.J. Pegues.

The Rebels hope they also improved their secondary by bringing in cornerbacks Trey Amos from Alabama and Brandon Turnage from Tennessee.

Ole Miss also added secondary pieces Yam Banks from South Florida, Key Lawrence from Oklahoma, and Louis Moore from Indiana.