Jamarious Brown Embraces Leadership Role as Ole Miss Reloads Defensive Front
OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss defensive lineman Jamarious Brown speaks with a quiet confidence and a clear message: the Rebels may be flying under the radar, but they’re not backing down.
In the wake of significant roster turnover, Brown acknowledges the challenges facing the defensive unit but emphasizes the team’s relentless work ethic and unity.
“I just feel like we’ve been working, working real hard and we’re the underdogs right now because we just had a lot of people leave. So we’re just working to continue to get better and we’re just going to show it in the season.”
Jamarious Brown
Mentoring the Next Generation
With a number of veteran players departing for the NFL, such as JJ Pegues, Jared Ivey, Princely Umanmielen and Walter Nolen, Brown finds himself in a pivotal leadership role.
Now entering his third season in Oxford, the Moss Point, Mississippi native is not only anchoring the defensive line but also mentoring the younger players who will be counted on to contribute early. “Everything we know we’re just pouring into our younger guys and we just try to show them the ropes in the right way,” Brown explained.
That buy-in has been a recurring theme throughout fall camp, as head coach Lane Kiffin and his staff work to retool a defense that lost so many key players on the line. Brown’s emergence as a vocal leader and example-setter has not gone unnoticed, especially as he continues to evolve both physically and mentally. “Everybody’s buying into the program and I’m excited to see what comes,” he added.
Preparing for the coming season and the next level
Brown also spoke about his personal growth and the advice he’s received from former Rebels and NFL players.
“As I get older I just watch the older guys, the guys previously here and the guys in the league, and I ask them ‘what’s the biggest thing from the transition to the league?’ Brown shared. “They’re basically just telling me like take care of your body and stuff like that.”
That attention to detail and preparation has become a cornerstone of Brown’s approach, as he eyes a breakout season and potentially a future at the next level. But for now, his focus remains squarely on helping Ole Miss defy expectations and build a cohesive, resilient defense.
With the season opener just weeks away, Brown’s words reflect a team determined to prove itself. Underdogs or not, the Rebels are ready to fight—and Jamarious Brown is leading the charge.
Jacob Quaglino
Jacob is a New Orleans, LA native and Ole Miss alumni, Class of 2024 and staff writer with The Rebel Walk. He has been a diehard fan of all Ole Miss sports his entire life, with his earliest Ole Miss sports memory being the Rebels' iconic 2008 upset of then-No. 4 Florida. Among his other favorite Rebel sports memories are storming the field after beating LSU in 2023 and Georgia in 2024, watching the Rebels upset Alabama in back to back years in 2014-15, seeing the women's golf team win the school's first-ever NCAA-recognized national championship in 2021, and watching the Rebel baseball team win the College World Series in 2022. He remains exceedingly hopeful that the Ole Miss Athletics Department's national championship trophy collection will grow in the coming years. Outside of The Rebel Walk, Jacob also works for a local radio news station and has many interests and hobbies, including reading, writing, watching college sports, playing pickleball, and traveling.
