Big weekend in Oxford as Ole Miss hosting talented portal QBs in Brady Allen, Mike Wright
OXFORD, Miss. – Monday is the biggest day of the college football season as Georgia and TCU square off for the national title.
This weekend is a pretty big deal in Oxford, Miss., as well.
Ole Miss, which needs quarterback depth on its roster, is hosting a pair of possible transfers on campus. Mike Wright, formerly of Vanderbilt, and Purdue’s Brady Allen are both taking official visits to Oxford.
Jaxson Dart returns to the Rebels as the incumbent starting quarterback, but after him the Ole Miss cupboard is a tad bare. Luke Altmyer opted to transfer to Illinois and Kinkead Dent, who does have eligibility remaining, participated in Senior Day last season and has not yet declared whether he intends to return to the team.
Mike Wright
Wright was a leader for the Commodores in his three seasons in Nashville. Last year he was named a team captain and represented the school at SEC Media Days.
Wright saw action in ten games for Vandy in 2022, completing 85-of-148 passes for 974 yards and 12 touchdowns. He was the Commodores’ starter at the beginning of the season and ended up sharing playing time with freshman A.J. Swann.
In his career, Wright completed 55% of his passes for 2,067 yards with 21 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He also rushed for 905 yards on 176 attempts with seven touchdowns.
Mike Wright is fast 💨 #TransferToTheSip pic.twitter.com/lDJoGwvIVQ
— We Run the Sip (@OMRebelNation) January 5, 2023
A native of Fayetteville, Ga., Wright rushed for a season-high 163 yards in the opening game at Hawaii.
Brady Allen
Allen, who only saw action in one game for the Boilermakers as a true freshman, has an impressive high school resume and was a consensus 4-star recruit.
He was Indiana’s Mr. Football for 2021 as he threw for 11,918 yards which is the second-highest total in the state’s history. In his senior year, he passed for 4,253 yards and 58 touchdowns.
ICYMI: Gibson Southern QB Brady Allen is the Courier & Press All-SW Indiana Player of the Year. 4,253 yards and 58 touchdowns. Won a state title.
Story: https://t.co/C9q5xd1LDh pic.twitter.com/mRF8y0PQjT
— Kyle Sokeland (@kylesokeland) December 11, 2021
Allen was the second-highest quarterback recruit in Purdue history ranking just below Kyle Orton, but ahead of Drew Brees. He led his Gibson Southern High to the 3A state championship.
Although Allen hails from Ft. Branch, Ind., he does have a southern connection. His uncle, Sean Fuller, is a drummer for the country band Florida-Georgia Line.
Other Weekend Visitors
Other Ole Miss visitors this weekend in addition to Wright and Allen include: Ohio State portal linebacker Javontae Jean-Baptiste, Memphis portal tight end Caden Prieskorn and Oklahoma State portal wide receiver Brycen Green.
Ole Miss opens the 2023 season Sept. 3 when the Rebels host Mercer at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.
Steve Barnes
Steve Barnes joins The Rebel Walk staff as a senior writer and brings a trifecta of journalistic experience. As a writer, he has covered college sports for Rivals.com, Football.com and SaturdayDownSouth.com as well as served as a beat writer for various traditional newspapers.
He has been a broadcaster for arena football and several national tournament events for the National Junior College Athletic Association as well as hosting various shows on radio.
A former sports information director at Albany (Ga.) State University and an assistant at Troy and West Florida, he has helped host many NCAA conference, regional and national events, including serving five years on the media committee of the NCAA Division II World Series.
Barnes, a native of Pensacola, Fla., attended Ole Miss in 1983-84, where his first journalism teacher was David Kellum. The duo has come a long way since that time.
He will bring a proven journalistic track record, along with a knack for finding the out-of-the-ordinary story angles to The Rebel Walk.
Barnes continues to reside in Pensacola a mere ten minutes from the beach because he does have taste and a brain.
