Lane Kiffin: Former quarterback John Rhys Plumlee not in ideal position

Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin wasn’t surprised to get a question about his former quarterback John Rhys Plumlee this week. The former four-star prospect switched from quarterback to slot receiver in the offseason, and the move hasn’t been overly beneficial for him thus far.

“Fair question,” Kiffin said. “It’s tough to move positions and you’re backing up (wide receiver Dontario) Drummond…one of our best players. It’s not ideal for him. He was backing up arguably one of the best quarterbacks (Matt Corral) in the country and now he’s probably backing up one of the best slots. Not ideal for him.”

As a freshman in 2019, John Rhys Plumlee appeared in nine games with eight starts at quarterback. He rushed for 1,023 yards and passed for 910 more but eventually lost the job to Matt Corral in 2020.

As a receiver, Plumlee hasn’t caught a pass since the 2021 season opener versus Louisville. He caught two balls for 16 yards. The most snaps he’s gotten overall were actually at quarterback.

In Week 2 versus Austin Peay, the Hattiesburg, Mississippi, native threw one pass for six yards. He also rushed four times for 64 yards.

It was a hard decision for Plumlee to make this offseason, but he chose to stick it out at Ole Miss, even while the NCAA began offering a one-time penalty-free transfer.

“To say that it didn’t cross my mind, I’d be lying to you,” Plumlee said. “But I love Ole Miss. I’ve started something pretty good here with my friends and family that love Ole Miss. The people here, the atmosphere here at Ole Miss, the baseball aspect of it, a lot went into it. But I feel really blessed to be at Ole Miss. So I’m happy that I stayed.”

Plumlee is one of several Ole Miss football players who also play baseball. In the spring, he hit .267 with 21 runs scored, four doubles, one home run and seven RBI.

The Ole Miss Rebels are 3-1 on the season. Their one loss came in Week 5 versus No. 1 Alabama. A hungry Arkansas Razorbacks team travels to Oxford this weekend. The Hogs are looking for redemption after dropping a game 37-0 versus Georgia.

The Rebs came in at No. 17 in this week’s AP Top 25 poll, while the Hogs fell five spots to No. 13.