Lane Kiffin Makes Big Moves in Response to Ole Miss’ Predicted Dominance for SEC Title Over Alabama

Ole Miss Rebels for so long has been waiting for some push to upgrade their O Line. Now that there lies a heavy possibility of Lane Kiffin’s program having an edge over Alabama Crimson Tide and bringing the SEC title home, the Rebels have come up with two big moves. These latest developments were shared by an Ole Miss fan on X.

Kenneth Boston and Taren Hedrick have changed their address to Kiffin’s program. On May 10, Jesse Simonton from On3 came up with a list of the Top 10 offensive line units in college football and Ole Miss came in at the tail end of the list. Now can the Rebels’ offensive line be a difference-maker in the race for the 2024 SEC title?

Dear Andy’s analysis drives Kiffin to make bold moves in O-Line

The Ole Miss fan’s tweet on June 10 hints at a huge possibility. The Rebels landed their 11th commitment on Sunday, June 9th afternoon. The fan’s tweet showed a three-star offensive tackle, Hendrick posing with HC Kiffin, he himself announced his pledge to Ole Miss on social media. He tweeted, “1000% committed HOTTY TODDY.”  The Columbia, Mo., native is rated as the No. 38 offensive tackle in the 2025 cycle and the No. 78 player in the state of Florida.

Even though John Garrison, the Rebels’ offensive line coach, is seen posing with 6-8, 315-pound tackle commit Boston, not much is known about him. It’s not that that anyone was hiding this giant of a man with SEC abilities, but since he belongs to rural America, his talents often failed to gain exposure. It was then Kiffin who scouted through talent and offered him the role on Wednesday, June 5. On receiving the offer, Boston shut it down with an emotional reaction with Garrison. The urge to make changes in the O-Line took momentum after Dear Andy’s analysis on the On3 podcast.     

Kiffin’s blueprint for non-traditional powers

As per the predictions brought about by Andy, there lies a high possibility of Kiffin’s program giving a tough call to Kalen DeBoer’s Alabama. To give a clearer picture, the analyst further pointed out, “The Rebels are plus 650 to win the SEC that’s the third-best odds. Georgia’s plus 185, Texas is plus 310 at FanDuel. Alabama is plus 950 like Old Miss has better odds to win the SEC than Alabama.”  Going by the current standings, Rebels now have the No.9 class in SEc and the No.15 class in the nation.

But for much of the last decade, the unit has essentially objectively been the worst offensive unit on the field for the program. With this, Ole Miss’ 2025 class is beginning to take shape rather quickly. The Rebels have assembled a roster full of impactful transfers and if these moves work in Kiffin’s favor, it will provide a road map to non-traditional powers and will turn out to be a cakewalk in taking over Crimson Tide. The class is headlined by four-star running back Ayklin Dear and four-star receiver Jerome Myles. Kiffin has also added Southern Miss transfer Gerquan Scott and North Carolina bookend Diego Pounds to the roster. 

Ole Miss’s high-scoring attack will be propelled by a veteran offensive line featuring a mixture of returning starters comprising guard Jeremy James and tackle Micah Pettus on one hand. Some quality internal options on the other hand include Jayden Williams and Victor Curne. Will the new changes in Kiffin’s squad usher in positive results? 

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