No one wants to play Ole Miss, SEC QB draft stock updates and more: What’s on Bruce Feldman’s radar

Georgia was the overwhelming preseason No. 1 team. Texas is the highest-ranked SEC team in the College Football Playoff at No. 3. Alabama has more Top 25 wins this season than the CFP’s top five teams combined.

But the SEC team that no one wants to play right now is one that isn’t even in the top 10.

“If you ask me right now which team I’d least want to face, it’s Ole Miss,” said an SEC defensive coordinator of a Top 25 team. “They’re now the most talented defensive team in the league. They have all these difference-maker pass rushers and a true lockdown corner in Trey Amos.

“They just got all these dudes up front. Three guys in the top five of sack leaders in the SEC (Suntarine Perkins, 10 sacks and No. 1; Princely Umanmielen, 9.5 sacks and tied for No. 2; and Jared Ivey, 7.5 sacks and tied for No. 5). That’s crazy! (J.J.) Pegues was a featured guy for them last year; he’s still really good (11.5 TFLs, two sacks) and he’s not even one of their top three! Walter Nolen is also really good. An inside guy with four sacks is pretty dang good. It’s really impressive.”

The other part of this that multiple SEC assistant coaches noted was that Ole Miss beat up Georgia even though the Rebels were without their best player, Tre Harris, a wide receiver who has been dealing with a lower-body injury. Harris’ 141 yards per game leads the country.

Last Saturday the Rebels held Georgia to its fewest points of the Kirby Smart era (10), its fewest total yards in seven seasons (245) and its fewest rushing yards since 2021 (59). Ole Miss leads the SEC in yards per play allowed in games against ranked opponents among the 14 teams who have faced at least two Top 25 opponents. Last year, the Rebels were dead last in the SEC at 7.81 YPP in those games.

To say Ole Miss has a ferocious defensive front is an understatement. It’s why defensive line coach Randall Joyner, a Larry Johnson protege, is making a good case to get Broyles Award consideration. That award is given to the nation’s top assistant, but, of course, Rebels defensive coordinator Pete Golding is also making a compelling case. Ole Miss has 23 more TFLs than anyone else in the SEC (103) and 18 more than anyone else in the country. It also has 13 more sacks than any other team in the SEC.

Four players already have double-digits in TFLs, and Ivey is close at 9.5. Last year, they only had one guy in double digits (Ivey with 11.5) Eight Rebels have at least four TFLs.

A big piece of that impact is due to the commitment Ole Miss made this offseason to upgrading its talent in the trenches through the portal.

Umanmielen, who transferred from Florida, and Nolan, who transferred from Texas A&M, were the big headliners. But other transfers are making a statement: top tackler Chris Paul Jr. (74 tackles, 10 TFLs) from Arkansas; second-leading tackler T.J. Dottery from Clemson; Amos from Alabama; and defensive back John Saunders from Miami (Ohio). Some current leaders transferred three years ago, like the 325-pound Pegues (Auburn), Ivey (Georgia Tech) and linebacker Khari Coleman (TCU).

The 6-foot-4, 255-pound Umanmielen has had 11.5 TFLs and 8.5 sacks in his last six games and has emerged as a dominant force for the Rebels.

“His quick get-off is phenomenal,” a Rebels coach told The Athletic this week. “He sets them up where he wants to counter them, sometimes with a spin move, or he will go speed-to-power rush at times. One of the (Georgia) tackles overset too quickly because he was so worried about Princely’s speed rush, so (Umanmielen) countered him with a spin move and was able to get a sack. He’s very smart and does a good job of studying the opposing tackles. He picks them apart.”

Umanmielen only played one snap in a 29-26 loss to LSU due to injury.

“If we had him, we win that game,” said that Rebels coach.

The 6-1, 210-pound Perkins, a former five-star recruit, has been another nightmare for offenses.

“He’s so freakin explosive. He’s one of the best QB spies in the country,” said the Rebels coach.

“He is stronger than you think at the point of attack for being a lighter guy,” said a rival SEC DC who has seen a lot of Ole Miss on crossover film. That coach has been very impressed with the job Golding has done this year. “They run more games than he used to at Alabama. He’s been really aggressive on first and second downs and he has really cut that D-line loose.”

What else is on my radar

Trends in the coaching carousel

The coaching carousel often follows perceived trends. This winter is not expected to have a lot of changes, but one thing to watch is whether older, proven winners from lower-levels of football are in vogue. Why? Athletic directors and search company heads have taken note of what has happened at Indiana this year, I’m told.

Curt Cignetti has led the Hoosiers to a 10-0 start. The 63-year-old began his head coaching career in 2011 at Indiana University of Pennsylvania in the Division II PSAC (Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference), where he spent six seasons before moving on to FCS Elon in the CAA (Coastal Athletic Association), where he went 14-9. Cignetti was then hired at James Madison, where that program elevated to FBS under him; JMU went 11-1 last year in the Sun Belt. Cignetti follows in the success of Lance Leipold, a former Division III coach who has won big everywhere he’s been while moving up.