Twenty-Two Names to Know for the Ole Miss Season: No. 5 Caden Prieskorn

OXFORD, Miss. – As we lead up to week one in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium for the kickoff of Ole Miss football’s 2024 season, The Rebel Walk team is highlighting one player each day for our ‘Ole Miss 22’ rankings. We’ll break down who they are, how they got here, and what we expect from each. 

Today, we take a look at the No. 5 player on the list, Tight End Caden Prieskorn.

Caden Prieskorn did not have the easiest route to the position he has put himself in today. A player who has played many levels of football and faced several trials of adversity throughout his career, there is no better person to call a leader on your team than this young man. Looked at as one of the top tight ends in the country, Prieskorn is destined for a tremendous final season of college football as one of the most important players on the Ole Miss roster.

How did Caden Prieskorn become an Ole Miss Rebel?

Coming out of high school, Prieskorn was unranked with no star ratings across major recruiting platforms. The Lake Orion native, who played quarterback in high school, decided to accept a walk-on offer at Memphis, where he would eventually make the full-time switch to tight end in 2019.

Prieskorn earned many honors as a Tiger such as a 2022 first-team All-AAC selection, a semifinalist nomination for the 2022 John Mackey Award and a 2022 Burlsworth Trophy nomination.

Following the end of the 2022 college football season, Prieskorn would enter the transfer portal. The ‘do-it-all’ tight end was ranked inside the top 50 of transfers in 2022 and rated the fifth-best tight end in the portal.

On January 9th, 2023, Prieskorn decided to take his talents to Oxford, Mississippi where he would join a loaded offense with an offensive-minded head coach in Lane Kiffin as well.

Rebels Land Key Target as Memphis TE Caden Prieskorn Announces Transfer to Ole Miss. Huge pickup for the Rebs. @AustinonAir1021 has more. ⤵️ #TransferToTheSip https://t.co/93d9i9numt

— The Rebel Walk (@TheRebelWalk) January 9, 2023

Career Outlook

Once he made the switch to tight end at Memphis, Prieskorn never looked back. In three seasons at Memphis, the future NFL draft prospect hauled in 55 grabs for 681 yards and seven touchdowns. Prieskorn led the Tigers in receiving yards in 2022 and tied for the team lead in touchdown grabs as well.

Seth Henigan found a way to connect with Caden Prieskorn to add another TD for the Tigers🔥#AmericanFB x @MemphisFB pic.twitter.com/Zw5D9OpnJW

— American Football (@American_FB) October 8, 2022

Prieskorn immediately grabbed Rebel fans’ attention upon his arrival to campus in 2023 with his size, alone. The six-foot-six, 250-plus-pound weapon turned heads in camp, earning a spot as the starter for Ole Miss in 2023. Unfortunately, injury held the tight end out for the first three games of the season forcing Prieskorn to make his debut on the road against Alabama in week four.

The elite run blocker played the remainder of the season, making a huge difference in the power run game for the Rebels as well as coming on in the pass game late in the year when Jaxson Dart needed him most.

Prieskorn finished his first year as a Rebel with 30 grabs for 449 yards and four touchdowns. Despite not catching a touchdown pass until the 11th game of the regular season, Prieskorn opened the eyes of football fans around the country by showing just how good his hands really are. The Rebel tight end ultimately iced the Egg Bowl victory in Starkville in 2022, slipping behind a run-committed defense for the score.

Big Poppa for six! @cpkorn12 | ESPN pic.twitter.com/UchGXBJw06

— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) November 24, 2023

#17 days away from Ole Miss football.

Short throwback to last year, Caden Prieskorn caught a 26-yd TD pass from Jaxson Dart in the egg bowl.

The Rebels would win the game 17-7 marking the second ever 10-win regular season in Ole Miss history.

pic.twitter.com/e8GLKHFN53

— T.J. (@TJOxley1) August 14, 2024

Prieskorn would not slow down in the Peach Bowl for the Rebels a few weeks later, finishing the game with 10 catches for 136 yards and two scores on his way to offensive MVP of the game. Many Rebel fans will always have the memory of the ridiculous one-handed grabs Prieskorn made in the Peach Bowl as well.

Ole Miss TE Caden Prieskorn only needs one hand. #OleMiss pic.twitter.com/JbwfIMv2KQ

— Brad Logan (@BradLoganCOTE) December 30, 2023

Following the Peach Bowl, Prieskorn would be one of the many Rebels deciding to use their final year of eligibility to return to Ole Miss for the 2024 season.

Fall camp and the 2024 season

Throughout fall camp, leaders have emerged from the pack in Oxford, and you can place your bets on Prieskorn being in that group. Although not the most vocal guy on the team, the Rebel tight end has received plenty of praise for his character and mentality alone.

Even today during the first press conferences of game week, Lane Kiffin and Jaxson Dart both gave their props to Prieskorn’s character and the way he has handled the amount of adversity in his life. Dart even went as far as saying he looks up to Prieskorn, seeing him as a big brother at times.

“I think Caden (Prieskorn) is a tremendous human…he is someone I really look up to.” – Dart on Prieskorn’s impact on the team

— Kam Wicker (@kam_wicker) August 26, 2024

Prieskorn and the rest of his Rebel teammates inch closer and closer to opening kickoff as they began their first official day of game prep Monday morning. On August 31st at 6 pm CT inside Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, Prieskorn will look to continue making an impact in the run and pass game for the Rebels as Ole Miss takes on Furman in the season opener.

The catch by Caden Prieskorn 😤 https://t.co/PO3DuKv3lA pic.twitter.com/zGdkalXBKs

— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) August 9, 2024