Rebel Roundabout: PFF ranks Ole Miss WRs room No. 2 in all of college football

It’s commonly accepted Ole Miss has an absolutely stacked wide receivers room in 2024-25. 

The question is just how stacked it actually is. 

Well, Pro Football Focus released its Top 10 groups in college football on Wednesday. Ole Miss came in at No. 2, trailing only Oregon. The Rebels were followed by Ohio State, Georgia, Texas, Missouri, Miami (Florida), Colorado, LSU and Oklahoma.

Ole Miss kept star veterans Tre Harris and Jordan Watkins from the NFL Draft in the off-season, while also adding former LSU wide receiver Deion Smith and a host of transfers. The Rebels pulled Juice Wells (South Carolina), Devin Price (FAU), Jordan Smart (North Texas) and Izaiah Hartrup (Southern Illinois) from the portal.

Also available are, among others, a pair of sophomores and former top recruits in Ayden Williams and Cayden Lee, as well as 2024 four-star signee Noreel White. Marquis Willis, a JUCO signee, didn’t make it academically.

“Everybody knows, really, the big goal is a national championship,” Harris said during his stop by the Spirit’s ‘Ivey League’ podcast. Harris was discussing expectations for the Rebels in 2024.

“That’s sitting in the back of everybody’s heads. Everybody is not necessarily feeling the pressure, but more so embracing it. We’ve got the team (and) the pieces.”

Harris, a one-time transfer from Louisiana Tech, was one of three Rebel wideouts with 700 or more receiving yards last season.

He set a new single-game school record for receiving touchdowns (4) in a season-opening blowout of Murray State, his Ole Miss debut. Harris was the team’s leading receiver with his 54 catches, 985 yards and eight touchdowns.

He’s PFF’s No. 6 returning WR in the nation. His 89.6 receiving grade a year ago was tied for sixth among FBS receivers.

RELATED: Ole Miss football has pair of PFF stat-stuffers in Harris and Umanmielen

LA SASSO THE 12TH OLE MISS MEN’S GOLF ALL-AMERICAN IN HISTORY

Ole Miss golfer Michael La Sasso has been named the 12th All-American in program history.

He’s the first since 2022.

PING honored La Sasso as a second-teamer on Wednesday, making him the third All-American under head coach Chris Malloy. La Sasso anchored the Rebels this season. He competed in all 10 tournaments and led the team in six. La Sasso helped Ole Miss claim the No. 2 seed in the Stanford Regional, the highest in program history. 

La Sasso, a sophomore but first-year Rebel, finished inside the Top 20 in all regular events. He had four Top 3 finishes. He led the Rebels with a 69.76 stroke average — second-best in school history. La Sasso was also All-SEC. He’ll compete for Team USA at the Arnold Palmer Cup next month.

ENGELHARDT HONORED AS CSC ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICAN

Lukas Engelhardt is a third-team Academic All-American by College Sports Communicators for the second straight year.

Engelhardt — the H. Boyd McWhorter SEC Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year — is the first such honoree for Rebel men’s tennis since 2014. He was also the 2024 SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year for men’s tennis and the Ole Miss Outstanding MBA Student Award. 

Engelhardt is a native of Augsburg, Germany. He has a 4.0 cumulative GPA across undergraduate and graduate schooling, including his Master’s in Business Administration.

Engelhardt won the 2023 Taylor Medal, the highest academic honor conferred by the University of Mississippi each year to less than one percent of the Ole Miss student body.

He’s a three-time SEC Spring Academic Honor Roll member and three-time ITA Scholar-Athlet. He’s a nine-time Chancellor’s Honor Roll selection. Engelhardt led the Rebels to five straight Chancellor’s Cup wins for best team GPA.