Practice Report | Observations from Tuesday’s Ole Miss football spring practice: ‘Iron Sharpens Iron’
OXFORD, Miss. – The Ole Miss football team kicked off April with another week of spring practice on Tuesday morning, now under two weeks away from the annual Grove Bowl spring game on April 13th.
Here are some of our observations from today’s practice.
What we saw on offense
With a lot of eyes on the offensive line unit this spring, we have seen more and more of the depth this unit has in the trenches for this coming season in Oxford. Today we saw Julius Buelow take some snaps at tackle. The Washington transfer was primarily a guard throughout his college career but most definitely has the size for the outside as he is listed at 6’8″ and 315 pounds.
Senior Caleb Warren returns at the center spot for the Rebels, but the position continues to see more added depth just like the rest of the offensive line. Reece McIntyre and Brycen Sanders were previously seen alongside Warren, and today we saw Preston Cushman take some snaps at center as well.
Speaking of offensive line, a few guys at the tight end spot caught my eye today. In two seasons at Virginia Tech, Dae’Quan Wright racked up 47 receptions for 574 yards. Today his routes looked crisp as he showed off some impressive speed for a guy listed 250 pounds. Dillon Hipp, a former three-star, looks to be fully involved now as the Rebels get closer to the spring game.
The receiver group — led by their new position coach George McDonald — looks better than ever at Ole Miss, which says a lot with the history of wideouts at the program. Tre Harris will generate most of the attention from the group, which is well deserved. However, I continue to be impressed with the emergence of rising sophomore Cayden Lee. The speedy receiver looks to make a much bigger impact in games next season. Today he spoke to the media and talked about how he has benefited from the extremely talented receiver room.
“I have a great relationship with all the guys. They teach me a lot of stuff, releases, routes, teaching me how to just define my routes more. Being able to learn from them has been great.“
~ Cayden Lee on learning from the upperclassmen
Some other observations from include the performance of two other receivers who caught my attention and seemed to be doing the same for the coaches. Joshua Aka and Joshua Pfeifer have been noticed getting more reps at receiver and excelling when getting the opportunity. Also, true-freshman quarterback AJ Maddox turned heads today. The Mississippi native has amazing arm talent and adds another piece to a loaded quarterback room.
What we saw on defense
Alabama transfer Trey Amos has constantly been seen guarding guys like Harris when lined up at the cornerback spot. The theme of ‘iron sharpens iron’ has been thrown around the Ole Miss program a lot given the amount of talent and depth at every position. Today Amos commented on the 1-on-1 battles that have been going on between him and Harris.
“We’re both from the same hometown in Louisiana. It is always a good thing to go up against one of the best. We’re always going at it and we always want to make each other better. Me and Tre Harris always try to see and work on things to make each other improve, and make everyone improve around us… I feel like it will make the others better to see how hard we work.“
~ Trey Amos on guarding Tre Harris at practice everyday
Other observations on the defensive side, from my point of view, came from the middle linebacker spot. The names of Khari Coleman, Chris ‘Pooh’ Paul Jr. and TJ Dudley are well known, but today I also noticed returner Tyler Banks getting more reps at the spot. Banks is a freak athlete with ‘scary’ size for a middle linebacker.
Rebel head coach Lane Kiffin also spoke with the media today after practice. He opened his press conference speaking on how he was impressed with what he saw on the defensive side of the ball during Saturday’s practice inside the Vaught, saying the defensive line specifically looked as good as they have ever been.
“I think it is really good to be in the second year of a defensive scheme. I think around this time last year we were really struggling with the new scheme and new players…I think Saturday for instance, that is probably the best we have looked on defense especially in the front.“
~ Lane Kiffin on being impressed by the defense
Year two in the Pete Golding defense is much anticipated for Rebel fans leading into the fall. I believe the defensive unit as a whole, especially the defensive line, will set some high expectations following the conclusion of the spring.
Kameron Wicker
Kam is a senior at Ole Miss, currently pursuing a degree in Journalism. Even though he's from Delhi, Louisiana, that didn't stop Kam from growing up a diehard Ole Miss fan. He's a sports guru who watches and follows all sports at all times. He lettered four years in football and baseball in high school and is an avid Saints, Pelicans, and Astros fan. In his free time, you can find him watching sports or at the rec participating in them.
