SEC honors Ole Miss’ Walter Nolen, one of six top-two-round NFL Draft projections by PFF

Walter Nolen on Monday was one of two Ole Miss Rebels projected as NFL first-round draft selections by Pro Football Focus.

The other was cornerback Trey Amos. 

PFF had six Rebels in the first two rounds. Nolen went off the board at No. 16 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Minnesota Vikings grabbed Amos at No. 28.

“He reminds me of Quinnen Williams that we had at ‘Bama, which was a Top 10 draft pick and elite player,” Ole Miss defensive coordinator Pete Golding said of Nolen. “When you have a guy like that, they’ve got to plan for him. 

“The good thing about that room is we’ve got several good players in that room.”

Another in the room is EDGE Princely Umanmielen.

Ole Miss (9-3, 5-3 SEC) is the only team in FBS to produce six players this season with 10 tackles for loss or more. 

Umanmielen has 13.0, the third-most of all Rebels behind only Nolen (14.0) and defensive tackle JJ Pegues (13.5). Defensive end Jared Ivey got to 10.0 in the Rebels’ 26-14 win over in-state rival Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl.

Umanmielen and second-year breakout EDGE Suntarine Perkins are tied for the team lead in sacks (10.5). PFF sent Umanmielen, the one-time Florida transfer, to the Cincinnati Bengals at No. 42. 

He was PFF’s first Rebel selected in the second round. Umanmielen was followed by linebacker Chris ‘Pooh’ Paul (No. 48, Buccaneers), wide receiver Tre Harris (No. 61, Philadelphia Eagles) and Jared Ivey (No. 64, Detroit Lions).

Nolen is a finalist for the Outland Trophy, which is awarded annually to college football’s best interior defensive lineman. He earned SEC Co-Defensive Lineman of the Week on Monday following a career day against the Bulldogs.

Nolen tied his career-high in both single-game total tackles (8.0) and tackles for loss (3.5). He had 1.5 sacks. Ole Miss held the Bulldogs to 39 rushing yards — the fifth time this season the Rebels limited their opponent to 50 or fewer. 

Nolen has 16 total tackles, 6.5 TFL and 2.5 sacks over his last two games.

“He’s very gifted,” Ole Miss defensive line coach Randall Joyner said. “Not just obviously on the field, but he’s a great human being. He’s raised the competition within the room. Everybody’s playing at a high level.”

SEC Co-Defensive Lineman of the Week 🦈@WalterNolenIII | #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/yFzrEM4xul

— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) December 2, 2024

Ole Miss currently appears on the outside looking in for the College Football Playoff. 

Conference championship games are this weekend. The Rebels will officially learn their fate next week, though Tuesday’s rankings release should provide a fairly clear indication of where they stand.

Ole Miss and fellow playoff contender South Carolina have the same record, but Ole Miss has a head-to-head win at USC by 24 points on their resume. Still, the Gamecocks jumped Ole Miss in Sunday’s final Associated Press poll. 

South Carolina moved up to No. 13. Ole Miss was No. 14 in last week’s CFP rankings, while South Carolina was a spot behind at No. 15.

“First, I have great respect for South Carolina,” Ole Miss fifth-year head coach Lane Kiffin said Sunday. “I think they’re a really good team. Well-coached, really good players. 

“Why do we even play games? If South Carolina were to jump us and we play in the same conference, very similar schedules, and we have the same record. We went to their place and we ran them out of their place. A 24-point SEC road win and we’re just handing the ball off in the fourth quarter to get out of there. 

“If the committee is even thinking about that, then what do you play the games for? We could still be playing the game and they still might not have scored a touchdown.”