It’s that time of the year when the “Portal King” gets to work for Ole Miss Football. Head coach Lane Kiffin is getting the Rebels ready for a big 2024, grabbing his second commitment of the cycle from Arkansas linebacker Chris Paul Jr.
The college football transfer portal is in full swing, with Lane Kiffin doing what he does best. Since the transfer portal rules changed a few years ago, Kiffin has used it to his advantage at Ole Miss. Unable to compete on a level playing field in recruiting, the Rebels head coach has been efficient in the portal.
The transfer portal officially opened on Monday, with Kiffin already grabbing the top wide receiver transfer from JUCO, per On3. Deion Smith, once of LSU, announced his commitment to the Rebels this week, improving the receiver room.
Late last night, Ole Miss managed to grab another top commit from Arkansas linebacker Chris Paul Jr.
BREAKING: Arkansas transfer LB Chris Paul Jr. has committed to Ole Miss🚨
— On3 (@On3sports) December 9, 2023
He ranks as the No. 1 linebacker in the On3 Industry Transfer Portal Rankings. https://t.co/p5Tj1hMYF7 pic.twitter.com/yNffbfWYra
Chris “Pooh” Paul Jr. was the top linebacker in the transfer portal, per On3 and 247sports. After redshirting in his freshman season, Chris Paul Jr. put together productive back-to-back seasons in 2022 and 2023 for the Razorbacks. In his two full seasons, the Georgia native notched 136 total tackles, six sacks and a fumble recovery.
It’s a massive pick-up for the Kiffin and the Rebels, one defensive coordinator Pete Golding will be extremely happy with.
The defense had a good stretch of games through the middle of the season. However, they struggled in the loss to Georgia and the wins over LSU and Texas A&M.
It’s a step in the right direction in making the defense a solid unit in 2024. Hopefully, we will see more big players head through the door from the portal.