Ole Miss football has an extremely exciting group of great receivers known as the NWO. But who are the Nasty Wide Outs in 2018?
With the 2018 Ole Miss football season rapidly approaching we are excited about certain position groups. One group Rebels fans are anticipating is a group of wide receivers known as the NWO. We know the Rebels have an exciting offense which can put up huge numbers. Coach Phil Longo has the best returning offense in the SEC and the NWO is a large part of its success.
However, the NWO is way more than a few receivers who share a belt between TDs. They are a key in the cog of the Ole Miss offense and deserve recognition. Last season we watched as AJ Brown led the SEC in receiving and the rest of the receivers also put up good numbers. The NWO had the knack of getting open, making great catches and scoring TDs.
When we say they are unstoppable we have a great argument even tho there are some new faces. The NWO lost Van Jefferson and Tre Nixon to transfers so that left gaps for wide receivers coach Jacob Peeler to fill. Of course, behind some great recruiting and a deep roster Peeler won’t have any problems filling the gaps. Even though there are seasoned vets there will also be new faces this season. We’ll take a closer look at the NWO and fill in the blanks.
Who Is The NWO?
Ole Miss Rebels Football
Now that we know what the NWO is lets take a closer look at who the Nasty Wide Outs are. The NWO is mainly led by a trio of wide receivers. Senior DaMarkus Lodge and juniors AJ Brown and DK Metcalf all are seasoned vets heading into 2018 and should all put up huge numbers.
In 2017 AJ Brown led the NWO of course with 75 catches for 1,252 yards and 11 TDs. Brown was backed up by DaMarkus Lodge who had 41 receptions for 698 yards with 7 TDs and DK Metcalf who had 39 grabs for 646 yards and 7 TDs. These three receivers carried the NWO in 2017.
Who Fills The Gaps?
There are gaps as we stated earlier but there is a lot of depth and talent in the wide receivers group. We can expect somebody to step up and fill an empty spot. Sophomore Braylon Sanders is set to be the guy who does. Sanders had 4 receptions for 65 yards and 1 TD in 2017. Sander is the only receiver on the active roster, besides Brown, Lodge and Metcalf, who had any stats in 2017. This season could be a breakout year for Sanders.
The rest of the active roster has some others who may jump to the forefront during 2018. Seniors Floyd Allen and Alex Weber are two who could have big seasons. They are joined by JUCO transfer Ryan Drew and red-shirt freshmen Drake Beck and Jared Farlow. Any of these NWO receivers could get a shot to tote the NWO belt in 2018. There are also some new additions to the NWO who we are anxious to see in action in 2018.
New Faces
Coach Matt Luke and WR coach Jacob Peeler went after some new weapons in the 2018 Ole Miss recruiting class. Freshman Demarcus Gregory was part of the early signing period and was on campus during the spring. Gregory is a long rangy receiver who will see action sooner rather than later.
In the fall Gregory and the rest of the NWO will be joined by freshmen Elijah Moore and Miles Battle. Both Moore and Battle were 4-star prospects out of high school. Both are very talented receivers and like Gregory they will be catching passes as Rebels very soon. Of course, like we said the gaps won’t be very hard to fill for Peeler.
This is truly the best returning receiving group in the SEC. The NWO will be making exciting catches and scoring TDs again in 2018 and should help make Ole Miss football fun to watch. Of course, we want to wish all these receivers good luck in the upcoming season. The NWO will open their 2018 campaign on September 1st against the Texas Tech Red Raiders in Houston. Kickoff is set for 11am CT and can be seen on ESPN. Hotty Toddy!