Keys to the Game: Ole Miss vs. Georgia State

OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss’ 2025 season is just about underway as the Rebels prepare to host the Georgia State Panthers tonight at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.

Head coach Lane Kiffin’s team is coming off a 10-win season in 2024, but there have been a lot of changes as Ole Miss only returns two starters each on offense and defense from last season.

Here are some keys for the newly reformed squad heading into their season opener against Georgia State.

Trust Austin Simmons

The Rebels’ first key should be trusting new QB1 Austin Simmons. The redshirt sophomore is making his first collegiate start on Saturday.

While he did not start a game in 2024, Simmons has seen time in blowouts, but also — most impressively — when he stepped in for an injured Jaxson Dart for a drive against No.3 Georgia in the Rebels’ upset victory last season.

In his singular drive against the Bulldogs, Simmons looked cool calm and collected as he went 5/6 with 64 yards before Ulysses Bentley IV found the end zone from 9 yards out to even the game at 7-7.

Proven flashes of Simmons abilities are exactly why he earned the job in the first place; now it is time to allow him to control the squad.

Establish The Ground Game

The Rebels should also focus on establishing their running attack.

Last season Ole Miss had a carousel of running backs, with some time due to injuries during some flat-out uncertainty of who the starter was.

With uncertainty in the running back room wild and an established third-year quarterback in Jaxson Dart, Ole Miss relied heavily on their passing attack which, at times, left them predictable.

The Rebels have also seen the return of Logan Diggs from injury. They also have Dominique Thomas back, and they have added transfer Damien Taylor from Troy and freshman Shekai Mills-Knight. This diversity in the running back room could be a major positive for Ole Miss this year, especially with the addition of Luke Hasz and return of Dae’Quan Wright at the tight end position; both very good run blockers to assist the offensive line.

While Hasz will have to wait to make his Rebels debut due to injury, Ole Miss is still set up for success in the run game, which, in turn, would help clear Simmons’ passing lanes and give the Rebels a complete offense.

Rebels’ New Defensive Look

The Rebels saw the exit of some major pieces on their defense, mainly on the defensive line. However, defensive coordinator Pete Golding expressed his excitement for this squad and the talent he has this season to coach.

“I don’t think we’re going to take a step back from last year,” Golding said recently.

Players agree with his standpoint and his mentality as linebacker TJ Dottery expressed his view of this year’s defense and mentality.

“The same physical, dominating mentality” Dottery said of what to expect. “Thats the standard, just the Landshark mentality.”

Dottery also stated in his press conference he understands the line is fairly new; however, he also relayed that the younger players did not take their practice snaps for granted last season as they played behind multiple NFL caliber Rebel players.

This new defense for Ole Miss will have to make its presence known early and often for the Rebels to see success this season, and there is no better time to start than week one.

Ole Miss kicks off at 6:45 pm CT today against Georgia State, and the game will be televised on SEC Network.