Ole Miss LB Chris Paul Jr. reflects on transfer from Arkansas, what it means to face former team

When Ole Miss takes on Arkansas this weekend it’ll be a homecoming of sorts for linebacker Chris Paul Jr.

The current Rebels defender suited up for the Razorbacks for three seasons before ultimately deciding to transfer this offseason. He found a new home with the Rebels after a lot of discussion and prayer.

“So it really, I sat down with my parents and like everyone knows I’m high on my faith,” Paul said on the Paul Finebaum Show on Wednesday. “I talk to God about everything, man. And it was just one of those times leaving a place that I was there for so long and became accustomed with those guys, that I just had to sit down and ask God, ‘Just lead me in the correct direction.'”

That direction was Ole Miss, a potential College Football Playoff contender.

But while Chris Paul Jr. has helped Ole Miss to a 6-2 record, Arkansas has also turned its fortunes around considerably. The Razorbacks are 5-3, just one game behind overall, while they actually are a half game ahead of the Rebels in the SEC standings. So this weekend could be a battle.

Paul reflected on his transfer and what this weekend will mean to him.

“Once I got here and got around the guys I could just feel the team atmosphere, but most importantly I could feel the goals of those guys,” Chris Paul Jr. said. “I see what those guys work for, I see how hard they work when I was watching the practice. And just getting around guys like (Jaxson) Dart, Jared Ivey, JJ Pegues and other big factors on the team I was just getting around those guys and just seeing how they operate. I felt at home here.

“Coach (Pete) Golding and coach (Lane) Kiffin did a great job with reassuring my parents that everything was OK. But most importantly what I liked the most about it was that coach Golding was really, he recruited me, but he was really, he more wanted to make sure I was OK as a person. Like I said earlier, he knows what situation I was coming from and he just wanted to make sure that I was in a great mental aspect as well as ready to play some football. So I can’t thank coach Kiffin and coach Golding for giving me this opportunity to be surrounded by a great group of guys.”

Still, there will likely be some mixed emotions for Chris Paul Jr. this weekend. That’s only natural.

“No doubt, man. But I’m really excited to get back out there,” he said. “I’m really excited to get out there with those guys and go out there with a hard-fought battle. Just seeing those guys again, man, in between the lines and the gridiron, man, it’s football. We’re here to take care of business, take care of the business aspect of things. But outside, I created bonds that I never broke, I never forget. I still talk to some of those guys, so that bond will never fade.

“But I just thank God for the position that I’m in today and I’m excited for Saturday.”