4-star safety Taylor Groves commits to Ole Miss
OXFORD, Miss. — On the eve of yet another football recruiting “dead period” that will run from June 28- July 24, Ole Miss and head coach Lane Kiffin have landed a big piece of the 2022 recruiting puzzle.
On Sunday, 4-star safety Taylor Groves took to his social media to announce his commitment to Ole Miss.
Since im bettin on myself imma completely double down…. Committed pic.twitter.com/6Gds4O6TFZ
— taylor groves (@iamtaylorgroves) June 27, 2021
According to the 247Sports Composite, Groves is the No. 17 safety and No. 10 player in the state of Tennessee in 2022. His primary recruiter for the Rebels is co-defensive coordinator Chris Partridge.
According to 247Sports, Groves chose the Rebels over reported offers from: Arkansas, LSU, Mississippi State, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee, A&M, Vanderbilt, Michigan, Notre Dame, West Virginia, Virginia Tech, Baylor, Cincinnati, Utah, Penn State, Minnesota, Michigan State, Kansas, Georgia Tech and Colorado.
In the former Michigan commit, the Rebels have found another true hybrid player as the 6-foot 2-inch, 175-pound Groves also plays wide receiver for East Robertson in Cross Plains, TN.
Although he committed to the Wolverines in February, Groves maintained a strong relationship with Ole Miss. So it came as no surprise that after the COVID-induced dead period ended when Groves was finally able to experience Oxford and more, he placed the Rebels back in the hunt!
The talented athlete led East Robertson with 22 receptions for 307 yards and three touchdowns. He also recorded 55 tackles, three tackles for loss, two interceptions, a fumble recovery, and a forced fumble.
While it appears Ole Miss will play Groves at the safety spot, it never hurts to have a player who can get inside the head of players on both sides of the ball.
When I say Groves is versatile, it’s no joke. He has also put the time in on special teams as a long snapper, kick returner, and even punter. He had five returns for 122 yards and averaged 36.7 yards on 13 punts.
What stands out on film, among many of Groves’ attributes, is his 4.42 speed — that and his internal clock. He has tremendous instinct and doesn’t flinch or shy away from going head to head with anyone. With his build, that speed, and those instincts, he is definitely going to cause problems for opposing offenses.
And with the first name “Taylor” and last name “Groves,” this young man couldn’t seem like more of a match made in Ole Miss heaven.
Hotty Toddy!
Follow Lee Ann Herring-Olvedo, our Director of Recruiting, on Twitter here. 
(Feature image courtesy of Robertson County Connection)
Lee Ann Herring-Olvedo
Herring-Olvedo sees college football the way championship programs do—from inside the personnel room. Every evaluation, every roster move, every recruiting battle tells a bigger story about identity, culture, and how a program is built to win in December, not just July.
With more than 15 years covering the SEC and the national recruiting landscape, Herring-Olvedo has built a reputation as one of the sport’s most respected personnel-driven voices—blending film evaluation, roster construction, and long-term program vision through a true front-office lens. Her coverage of powerhouse brands like Ole Miss Rebels and Kentucky Wildcatshas consistently gone beyond headlines, focusing instead on the blueprint behind winning programs: development, fit, culture, and recruiting strategy.
That foundation was formed early at Brown University, where she worked in player personnel and recruiting while competing as a student-athlete. Inside those recruiting operations rooms, she learned how elite organizations are truly built—through relentless evaluation, relationship building, projection, and trust in the board. Those experiences shaped the way she studies the game today: part scout, part storyteller, part architect.
Her analysis and reporting have appeared across major platforms including ESPN, NFL coverage spaces, USA Today Sports, and Saturday Down South. She also brought her personnel-minded approach to the airwaves as an on-air analyst for the Wake Up 502 College Football Show on Big X Sports Radio 96.1, where she became known for combining film-room detail with a wider understanding of roster identity and program trajectory.
In 2025, covering the rise of Houston Cougars football under Willie Fritz reignited the part of the sport that first drew her into football—the culture, the edge, the belief that a roster can reshape an entire city. That inspiration led to the launch of Coogs 365 Sports, a platform built to cover Houston athletics through a true scouting and recruiting lens while connecting the emotion of the game to the heartbeat of H-Town.
Now, Herring-Olvedo returns to The Rebel Walk where with an even deeper perspective shaped by years inside recruiting circles, national SEC coverage, and hands-on evaluation experience. Her return brings a familiar voice back to Ole Miss coverage—but with an evolved lens rooted in roster architecture, player development, and the modern realities of building championship-caliber football in the NIL and portal era.
For Herring-Olvedo, recruiting has never been about stars beside a name. It is about identifying competitors, projecting growth, and building a locker room capable of sustaining success. Her philosophy mirrors the best front offices in football: stack traits, trust culture, and never stop building.
