tre harris, Santalin Perkins and Brandon Turnage All spoke to the media after Thursday's practice. Scroll through to see the latest updates on their journey.
make connections
Perhaps one of the biggest recruiting efforts of the offseason for Ole Miss. tre harris After a spectacular first year in the red and blue, he returns for his senior campaign. Harris proved how successful transfer portal players can be at Ole Miss last season, leading the Rebels with 985 receiving yards and eight touchdowns while battling injuries.
This time last year, Harris was reaping the benefits. jackson darts After starting his career at Louisiana Tech University, he received a FaceTime call when he was hired. Fast forward a year and Harris was helping Dart add more talent to the roster.
“He and I were constantly on FaceTime calls.” Diego Pounds, Nate CalepoJuice Wells, guys like that, they're just trying to get everyone to buy in,” Harris said. “Just connecting with those guys and showing them what 'Ole Miss' is all about. . It shows that we're going to come to work every day and be the best we can be.”
One of the big names the Rebels attracted to the portal came out of Harris' backyard.Harris didn't know he was transferring to Alabama. trey amos They must have missed each other, though, since Amos played at a Catholic high school in New Iberia, Louisiana, just 32 miles south of Comeau High School, where Harris attended. Both players currently wear No. 9 for the Rebels and play against each other every day in practice.
“Actually, we've never met. His high school is probably 15 to 25 minutes from my high school,” Harris said. “It's crazy how two kids who live in the same city keep going to the same place every day.”
hungry for more
Santalin Perkins He has long been one of the most highly anticipated high school prospects at Ole Miss, and he did not disappoint in 2023. The former five-star prospect from Raleigh, Mississippi played in all 13 games and finished fourth among Rebel linebackers. He had 38 tackles, 5.5 for loss and 3.5 sacks.
“Coming in last year out of high school, everything was fast. I had to step down to play defense. It was kind of tough coming in,” Perkins said. “When I first came in, they tried to have me play middle linebacker and then they tried to play Jack as well, so I learned both positions at the same time. This year, he taught me Jack “And next year he's going to give me an opportunity to play Jack.” He'll probably move me to middle linebacker to get ready for the pros. Dew. ”
The goal now for Perkins is to go big, preparing for a bigger role in 2024 and ultimately a career in the NFL. Perkins, who played at 205 pounds last year, hopes to move up to 220 pounds by fall. And as he told the media on Thursday, you have to eat a lot to get big.
“We have to try to get to at least 220 points before the season starts,” Perkins said. “I try to eat anything to gain weight. Vegetables, cornbread, things like that. We talk every day about how to gain weight. So far it's going well.”
Lafayette Star is back
Brandon Turnage He was scouted out of Lafayette High School and was ranked by ESPN as one of the top 100 prospects in the nation as a 2019 graduate. His journey first took him from his home to Alabama and then through the transfer portal to Tennessee. Turnage is currently in his final college season at home, and the familiar surroundings are already helping him grow.
“It feels great to be home and be with family and friends,” Turnage said. “I've been thinking about doing this for a long time. Since it's my last year of college football, I felt it would be good to get back to my family and see what it felt like to be home.” “It makes me go a little hard, and that's true. It's a great opportunity for all my buddies to be able to come and watch me play instead of watching over the TV. I felt like it was a great time.”
Brandon, who grew up in Oxford and starred at Lafayette, spent a lot of time with Ole Miss football. Now that he's back, he has a unique perspective on how the program has evolved. lane kiffinAnd he's excited to be a part of something special in his hometown.
“I was here almost every week in high school. I felt like I was part of the team. It was like a family. I still have that same feeling and it's like a family no matter where I am. “We have a great relationship. We're building. Every unit is cool with the other units. We feel like we're all together, just like we were back then,” Turnage said. “It's definitely a more professional program now. That's something I really wanted to be a part of. I saw how they do things before I came here. We played against them, we watched them, and Coach Golding came here and said his pro-style defense, there couldn't have been a better time and opportunity.”
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