last year old Miss put together a historic season winning 11 games for the first time in school history and finishing in the top 10 of the final AP rankings heading into the 2024 season they come in ranked number six in the preseason polls their best preseason ranking since the early 1970s there are high expectations for the rebels this year and they could be a dangerous team in the SEC This Is How Lane kein turned Old Miss football into a college football playoff Contender but before we get into this if you enjoy college football content like this make sure to leave a like And subscribe also let me know which team you are most excited to watch this season in the comment section below when Lane kein arrived at Old Miss they were coming off an embarrassing loss to Mississippi State after missing the extra point to tie the game the reason the extra point was missed was because Elijah Moore was flagged for mocking a urinating dog and Old Miss would lose 21 to 20 Matt Luke was given a tough task to rebuild Old Miss falling and CAA sanctions that occurred under Hugh freeze included a self-imposed postseason ban in 2017 and a second postseason ban from the NCAA in 2018 allowing players to transfer without losing eligibility they also were put on probation for 3 years at a reduction in scholarships and recruiting restrictions Luke would go 15 and 21 in three seasons and the program looked to be going in the wrong direction the man chosen to replace Matt Luke would be controversial head coach Lane kein kein Rose to fame as an assistant for USC before being hired by the Oakland Raiders as head coach at the age of 31 which made him the youngest coach in Raiders history owner Al Davis had found success hiring young coaches in their 30s with John Madden Mike Shanahan and John guden all coming to mind kein also became the youngest head coach in modern NFL history following a 4 and2 season Chris mortson reported Davis tried to force kein to resign who refused because he did not want to forgo his $2 million in guaranteed salary 2008 would be drama filled between Davis and kein that deserves a video all by itself following the Raiders kein would become the youngest head coach at the FBS level when he was hired by Tennessee going 7 and six in his lone season and would bolt to USC leaving fans and students angry to the point where students rioted on campus giin would go 28 and 15 in three seasons at USC for being fired after a 3 and2 start kein was fired after a 62 to 41 loss to Arizona State weeks earlier fans began to chant fire kein and booing him during their home opener against Washington state giin was left at Los Angeles International Airport while his bags were taken back to campus giin would then serve as an offense coordinator and quarterback coach at Alabama from 2014 to 2016 in 2014 he was named the Royals award finalist after three controversial departures from one NFL team and two colleges kein would rehabilitate his career under Nick Savin later being named fa's next head coach in December of 2016 kein would lead fa to two Conference USA championships in three seasons lean the owa 26 and3 record before being named head coach at Old Miss when kein was hired many wondered if he would use Old Miss as a stepping stone if he would burn out or if he would lead the rebels into the college football playoff contention giin walked into a tough situation as according to Sports Illustrated Ben Pikman several Old Miss players reportedly stormed out of the meeting in which athletic director Keith Carter told players Luke had been fired after the meeting Junior offensive lineman Chandler to it said half the team is talking about leaving adding that if the entire coaching staff is dismissed he doesn't think many players will stay with the program giin would not retain Rich Rodriguez as offensive coordinator choosing to bring in Jeff lebby instead led by quarterback Matt cral Old Miss would go five and five and beat number seven Indiana in the Outback Bowl making it their first Bowl win since 2015 when they won the Sugar Bowl the 2020 season would start one and four but they would win four of their last five games ending strong during this 2021 season Old Miss would go 10 and two during the regular season with their two losses to number one Alabama and number 18 Auburn while they upseted number 13 Arkansas and number 11 T&M they were play in the Sugar Bowl and lost to number six Baylor 21-7 during the 2022 recruiting cycle Lan kein would earn the nickname portal King bringing in the second best transfer class according to 247 sports with 18 different transfers headlined by USC quarterback Jackson Dart tight end Michael trig from USC JJ puges from Auburn Western Kentucky offensive tackle Mason Brooks Georgia Tech Edge jiren Ivy Central Michigan linebacker Troy Brown TCU running back Zack Evans and Auburn safety larius Tennyson all of whom were fourstar transfers Old Miss would start the season off 7 and0 with an upset win over number seven Kentucky or a loss on the road to LSU they would Rebound with a win over Tex A&M before losing four straight to end the season 8 and5 losing to Texas Tech in the Texas bow L kein would once again crush it in the transfer port bring in Chris Graves from Miami zachari Franklin from UTSA zamari Walton from Georgia Tech Monty Montgomery from Louisville quarterback Walker Howard from LSU Hayden prescor from Memphis Chris Marshall from Texas A&M Trey Harris from Louisiana Tech and John Saunders from Miami of Ohio who were all four-star transfers leading to Old Miss finishing second in the transfer portal with Jackson dart back as a starting quarterback Old Miss started the season as the 22nd team in the preseason polls and started the season 3 and0 before losing the number to 13 Alabama it would then go on a five-game win streak before losing to Georgia but ended the season on a three-game win streak including a peach bow win over number 10 Penn State 38-25 to end the season 11-2 their first 11- win season in program history Jackson Dart would impressed throughout the season throwing for 3,364 yards 25 touchdowns and five interceptions also rushing for 389 yards and eight touchdowns on the ground Quan junkins also impressed rushing for 1,158 yards and 15 touchdowns on the on the ground while Trey Harris had 985 receiving yards and eight touchdowns they averaged 35.1 points per game while only allowing 22.5 points per game ranking 41st in the nation during the offseason Judkins would choose to transfer to Ohio State they would add fourstar transfer running back Logan digs from LSU along with Trey Amos from Alabama tan Wright from Virginia Tech Yan Banks from South Alabama Antoine Wells Jr from South Carolina princ Ley uman from Florida and Chris Paul from Arkansas who were all four-star transfers though the biggest get in the transfer portal for Old Miss had to be former five-star defensive lineman Walter Nolan who remained a five-star player in the transfer portal Nolan will look to be a key piece on a dangerous defensive line for Old Miss this season according to Lane kein heading into the 2024 season is the most talented roster he has had in a while he has put together a strong coaching staff during the offseason kein added former Giants head coach Joe judge as an analyst judge also coached at Alabama and for the Patriots learning under Nick Savin and Bill bich in the past along with that kein also added former Mississippi State head coach Zack Garnett as an analyst Old Miss added former Alabama defense coordinator Pete Golding heading into last season who helped the lanchar defense rank fifth in the FBS and turnover margin and led the SEC there's a lot of hype surrounding Old Miss heading into the season as they are coming into the year ranked sixth in the eight which is their highest initial ranking since Archie Manning in 1970 kein spoke on the expectation saying even players who have had previous success here or other places that doesn't mean anything either just making sure that they understand how that means nothing and those can always be exact opposites a lot of the time from what's happened at the end of the year describe the hype train as rat poison on offense Jackson Dart returns for his third year as a starter and has the fifth best odds to win the Heisman Trophy will have a stacked wide receiver room this year led by Trey Harris Jordan Watkins and Antoine Wells the biggest question around the offense though is who will replace Judkins Bentley IV was the backup last year and rushed for 540 yards on the ground but it could also be Miami transfer Henry Paris Jr on defense linebacker zarian Perkins defensive enger and Ivy and safety John Saunders Jr all return while their portal Hall could be huge headlined by Walter Nolan on paper the rebels have one of the most impressive rosters across college football Ben Garrett from on three spoke on whether Old Miss looks like the real deal saying absolutely I think that's one of the biggest takeaways from preseason camp I mean with a team like this where there are a lot of questions not just about the Personnel but also can Old Miss be that team that steps up and takes over and breaks through the glass ceiling like Clemson did one of the first things you want to see is do they look like that and they look like that out there on the practice field in the Four Season since Old Miss hired kein Alabama and Georgia are the only SEC teams have compiled a better winning percentage than kein Rebels Old Miss starts the season with the manageable non-conference schedule with games against Ferman Middle Tennessee and Georgia Southern at home and Road game in week three against Wake Forest they host Kentucky in the SEC opener before going on the road to take on South Carolina and LSU for hosting Oklahoma they then travel on the road to take on Arkansas before hosting Georgia followed by a road game against Florida and ending the season hosting Mississippi State they avoid having to play Texas Alabama Missouri and Tennessee and get to host Georgia rather than traveling to Athens the toughest Road game comes against you the last time all Miss won the SEC was in 1963 and Phil steel projects them to finish fourth in the conference with the 10 and2 or 9 and3 record they could take an at llarge spot in the college football playoff this year when asked about hosting a college football playoff game Dart told the media I don't think Oxford would be ready for that it would be like the Moran Wallen concert when he came through I don't think it could compete if we hosted a game that would be a special day in Oxford and I feel bad for whoever would have to come in and play there I think Lane kein is something special down in Oxford and they are a team I'm excited to watch this season and would not be surprised if they find themselves competing for a national title this season what do you think how well will Old Miss do this year let me know in the comment section below if you enjoyed this video make sure to check out one of my other videos YouTube thinks you will love right here thank you so much for watching and as always remember to embrace the grind