Jaxson Dart analyzes his growth from last year's Ole Miss spring game

Jaxson Dart analyzed his growth this year compared to last season, his first on Ole Miss’ campus, and he definitely made strides.

The Rebels quarterback is in a competition for Oklahoma State transfer Spencer Sanders and LSU transfer Walker Howard. But, Dart is the returning starter which should give him a leg up in Lane Kiffin’s offense

Dart spoke about being a lot more comfortable with the offense but still needing improvements.

“Yeah, I mean, the Grove Bowl is a little part of what we do during the spring,” Dart said. “We’re kind of limited on our play calls and stuff like that. But, you know, I kind of just take the whole outlook of my spring from this year and last year and I thought I’ve made huge improvements. Now, I only turned the ball over once all spring so I feel like that was a big part of my progression. 

“I thought that last year, I got into, at times, to turning the ball over and made some dumb decisions, but I feel comfortable in the offense now to where I feel confident in my reads. The game slowed down a little bit. So I feel like I’ve made big strides and I look forward to continuing to develop.”

As a first-year starter, Dart finished the 2022 season with 2,974 yards, 20 touchdowns, 11 interceptions, a 62.4% completion percentage, 614 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown.

When asked if he was more comfortable in the offense this year, Dart kept it simple.

“Yeah, absolutely,” Dart said.

As far as spring itself, Dart and Ole Miss used it as an evaluation and development period as the team turns the page to 2023.

“I think sometimes it’s hard going through spring when you get into you know, injuries and stuff like that,” Dart said. “And you know, we have some key pieces that can’t play today because they were hurt, but I feel like a lot of guys stepped up and played big roles this spring. 

“I’ve had a lot of guys get better in just a short time. So it’s fun to see them progress. And you know, watch our offense flourish at times. It’s really exciting.”

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As a member of the Class of 2021, Dart was a four-star recruit out of Draper (Utah) Corner Canyon, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He was the No. 2 overall prospect in the state, the No. 7 quarterback in the class and the No. 42 overall prospect in the class.