Ole Miss Football: 2018 Recruiting Class Is Looking Up For Rebels
With all the activity currently surrounding Ole Miss football lately we’ve lost focus on what is surely business as usual for Ole Miss football recruiting.
The recruiting front for Ole Miss football was looking promising until the sudden resignation of Hugh Freeze in late July. Since that time Ole Miss has lost a few promising recruits because of it. Of course, there have been other issues which have also made a negative impact on Ole Miss recruiting.
We went thru a tumultuous season with an unproven interim head coach. There many ups and down both on and off the field as we waited on the looming NCAA sanctions. However, we finished the season on a strong note with a 31-28 win in the Egg Bowl. Of course, this and the unity of most Rebels players ultimately allowed coach Matt Luke to become the permanent head coach of Ole Miss football.
Now even after we have received sanctions which included a postseason ban for 2018, we are still struggling because of possible transfers. There has been a whale ton of negative media directed towards the Ole Miss program in recent weeks. Of course, this has had a certain effect on football recruiting. Business as usual has been anything but perfect, however head coach Matt Luke and his staff have been busy. They got great news today!
https://twitter.com/cam_white25/status/939267279019298816
White Helps Ole Miss
Ole Miss Rebels Football
Considering everything this Ole Miss football program has been thru we aren’t really in that bad of shape. Could it be better? Of course, it could but this afternoon it got much better. As of today, Ole Miss has gained the commitment of Cam White.
Cam White of Madison Central is one of the top players in state and had quite a check list of good schools to choose from. With offers from Alabama, Arkansas and Louisville among others White’s commitment is great for the Rebels.
White, a 6’1″ 185lb safety is the 18th ranked player in Mississippi and the 62nd best safety prospect in the nation, as reported by David Johnson of OMSpirit. He is also the fifth commitment from Mississippi.
This commitment today from White could be huge for this recruiting class should he help pull some more good athletes towards Ole Miss. Recruits want to play with the best and White is one of the best around. I fully expect White to play in the secondary immediately and he’ll be a game changer for the Rebels.
More Focus On Defense
White’s commitment is the 10th defensive commitment out of 12 in the 2018 recruiting class. There is an obvious effort to establish depth on the Ole Miss defense and it tells me McGriff is recruiting hard. Although White is the only safety in this class thus far, he is the 3rd defensive back for 2018 at this point. White joins Keidron Smith and JaKorey Hawkins wo are two corner backs which have committed for the 2018 class. This is great for a depleted Ole Miss secondary.
There are five defensive linemen in the 2018 recruiting class so far with four of those being big defensive tackles. Allen Love, Quentin Bivens, Ka’Darian Hill and Hal Northern are all defensive tackles who can make an immediate impact. The lone defensive end in this class so far is Deuntra Hyman of Meridian.
Jonathan Hess who is listed as an outside line-backer, however at 6’5″ and 215 lbs could easily find himself as a hybrid defensive end. However as a line-backer He is believed to contribute immediately. Hess is joined in the 2018 linebacker class by Jaquez Jones, a 6 foot 225 lbs line-backer out of Tuscaloosa.
The focus on defense tell us a couple of other things. All of these defensive players have been solid commits for Ole Miss and their future stake in McGriff’s Crimedawg defense. Given some time this future Ole Miss could bring back the Landshark D we’ve been missing in recent seasons.
Don’t Be Fooled By Stars
“Oh they are only two star or three star athletes,” many Ole Miss football fans have said with the 2018 class. Maybe so. However, there have been some really great Ole Miss players who were only recruited as 2 or 3 star players. Think about Patrick Willis.
Sure, five-star players are great when you can pick them up. However, right now Ole Miss has several four and five-star players who’ll be transferring from the program soon. Sometimes, a two or three star can appreciate their opportunity a little more.
That isn’t meant or intended to sound salty. Diehard Ole Miss football fans are having to deal with a lot of stuff right now. It’s not easy for Ole Miss football right now. The next few weeks will be paramount in helping the program.
Right now Ole Miss has what are considered to be 12 hard recruits for the 2018 class. Although all 12 are considered three star players by 247Sports.com, they are all great players and can all contribute to Ole Miss football immediately. Whatever you do don’t be fooled by the stars.
In Closing
This isn’t a bad 2018 recruiting class. With the latest commitment there could easily come more. OHT believes there will be more and very soon The next few of weeks are huge for recruiting. Sure, Ole Miss will continue to get dragged thru the media mud, however the kids we get in 2018 will certainly be some of the best.
How the 2018 class finally shapes up could calm a few nerves for Ole Miss football fans. It could also be a class which will finish better than their current ranking which is the 65th best nationally ranked recruiting class. Seeing how the White commitment affects recruiting overall should be interesting to say the least. Hotty Damn Toddy!