How beating Alabama could impact Ole Miss recruiting efforts

Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin has a lot on his mind ahead of Saturday’s game against No. 1 Alabama, but the recruiting opportunity is not lost on the Rebels head coach.

“I think if you just look at recruiting and beyond, the most important thing is to play well,” Kiffin said. “Even if that’s not in a win so recruits see, ‘OK, hey, we go there, we’re close to playing with the No. 1 team, so maybe myself and a couple kids can be the difference taking us there,’” 

Kiffin added that playing close games and covering the spread doesn’t effect the season or the program, but it does have an impact in recruiting.

One target in particular that could be effected by the result of the game is 2023 five-star quarterback Arch Manning.

Manning is visiting Alabama for the matchup against Ole Miss and will visit Ole Miss later in the season. Kiffin has made Manning a priority. At one point, Manning was the only person that Kiffin followed on Instagram.

Ole Miss is among the presumptive top five for Manning that also includes Clemson, Alabama, Georgia and Texas. Manning’s father, Cooper, uncle, NFL great Eli and grandfather, Archie, all played at Ole Miss. Eli’s uniform No. 10 and Archie’s No. 18 are both retired by the Ole Miss Rebels, as Eli was the SEC Offensive Player of the Year in 2003, and Archie was the SEC Player of the Year in 1969.

In the 2022 class, Ole Miss holds 13 commits, and remain involved in the recruitments of a number of blue-chip prospects like five-star wide receiver Barion Brown, four-star running back Javontae Barnes and four-star quarterback Justyn Martin, who recently decommitted from Cal.

Lane Kiffin has led Ole Miss to a 3-0 record to start the 2021 season. The Rebels lead the FBS in 52.7 points per game. Quarterback Matt Corral has emerged as the Heisman frontrunner having thrown for 997 yards and nine touchdowns in three games, completing nearly 70% of his passes. On the ground, Corral has rushed for 158 yards and five more touchdowns.

Last season, Ole Miss shredded the Crimson Tide defense for 650 yards and 48 points, leaving fans stunned at how easily the Rebels were able to move the ball against Alabama. The Crimson Tide wound up pulling away in the second half for a 63-48 win on the way to an undefeated national championship. With a defense that looks much improved from 2020 against an Alabama offense that, while still extremely productive, likely won’t reach heights that the 2020 offense reached, No. 12 Ole Miss will look to upset No. 1 Alabama on Saturday.