What's next for Ole Miss Rebels as Jaxson Dart officially declares for the 2025 NFL Draft?
It was all but a formality for Jaxson Dart to officially declare for the 2025 NFL Draft, but he finally did so on Friday afternoon, December 27th.Unless Dart were to try and attempt to seek some sort of special exception or waiver from the NCAA it was well known that he had run out of […]
It was all but a formality for Jaxson Dart to officially declare for the 2025 NFL Draft, but he finally did so on Friday afternoon, December 27th.
Unless Dart were to try and attempt to seek some sort of special exception or waiver from the NCAA it was well known that he had run out of his standard years of eligibility to play at the FBS collegiate level.
So, what does life look like for Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss now that he's officially moving on to his professional career as one of the top quarterback prospects in the 2025 NFL Draft?
Jaxson Dart declares for 2025 NFL Draft
Jaxson Dart finished his illustrious career at Ole Miss as the all-time program leader in career passing yards and ranked second in passing touchdowns behind only Eli Manning. Heading into his "last ride" against Duke next week Dart has now played 38 games with the Rebels, winning 28 of them. And yes, that makes him the winningest QB in Ole Miss Football history.
Of course, such a special player for the program couldn't just say, "I'm leaving", without sharing a heartfelt message. So, on Friday as Dart made his departure official, he shared two posts–one video, one written–leaving a special message for fans, teammates, and his coaches at Ole Miss:
Jaxson Dart will be sorely missed. His leadership. His drive. His unbelievable performances. Dart finished his final season ranking first among all quarterbacks in the nation in passer rating, total yards per game, and adjusted yards per pass attempt. He finished top five in EPA per play and total QBR as well. Special doesn't even begin to describe how talented he is and or how meaningful his time was with Ole Miss. And it's clear he felt the same as he shared his official announcement post:
To Rebel Nation – Words cannot express the depth of my feelings and emotions in this moment… but "THANK YOU" seems like the right place to start.
THANK YOU for the love and support that y'all have showed me at Ole Miss. Who would have known that a kid who grew up in Utah would find his way to the great state of Mississippi in order to fulfill his college gridiron dreams. I really and truly came of age at this great University, THANK YOU.
To my teammates – you are my brothers forever! I will never forget you and I will be rooting for you endlessly. YOU were what made all of this so special. Being by your side as your friend and teammate has changed me for the better. THANK YOU.
To Coach Kiffin, Coach Weis, and the entire Coaching Staff, THANK YOU for pouring into me… for pushing me… for caring about me beyond the white lines. Y'all made me a better player and a better man. I love and appreciate y'all more than you'll ever know.
To the Ole Miss community, I did everything in my power to make y'all proud as a person and player. I can say with absolute certainty, that I gave it everything I had, to bring you wins, success, and excitement. I will never, ever forget your love and support. THANK YOU.
All of this being said, we have unfinished business. I CAN'T WAIT to put on that #2 Ole Miss jersey for one last ride with my guys before beginning preparation for the 2025 NFL Draft. As always, I promise to leave every ounce of what I've got on that football field one last time for Ole Miss. THANK YOU and Hotty Toddy!
Lane Kiffin has had Jaxson Dart as his starting quarterback for nearly 40 games in a row now. He'll get to coach him one more time as Ole Miss takes on Duke in the TaxSlayer Bowl Gator Bowl on January 2nd and 6:30pm CT. But what will come next for the Ole Miss Rebels in 2025 and beyond?
Ole Miss QB of the Future
The "Portal King" Lane Kiffin has been working his magic once again in the Transfer Portal and there's still time left for him to make a few more moves, but the one position he hasn't addressed (as of this writing) is quarterback.
Jaxson Dart is declaring for the NFL Draft. Former five star QB Walker Howard transferred out to play for Louisiana. The remaining quarterbacks on the roster have exactly zero career starts under their belt with Ole Miss. While it's likely that Kiffin and company add another arm before the spring semester concludes fans need not worry because the quarterback of the future is already on campus.
Fans got a short glimpse of what might be to come with freshman phenom Austin Simmons on a few occasions this season, but none more promising than his first drive against Georgia. Dart was forced out briefly with an ankle injury and Kiffin did not force Simmons to play with the kid gloves on. He unleashed him immediately, without hesitation.
Simmons completed 5 of his 6 passes for 64 yards as Ole Miss tied Georgia 7-7 before inevitably stomping them into the ground with a final score of 28-10. The week prior Simmons came in during junk time and went 3 for 3 with 47 yards and a touchdown pass.
The kid's clearly got skills. But can he really replace Dart?
Replacing the winningest, most productive quarterback in Ole Miss history won't be an easy task, but Simmons looks up to the challenge. Simmons finished high school two years early to reclassify from 2025 to the 2023 recruiting class thanks to his unreal academic and athletic prowess.
He's now spent two seasons behind Jaxson Dart, preparing to take the reins at quarterback and should be the easy favorite to lead Ole Miss towards a very bright future. The only other candidates on the team who may push for the starting job (if at all) are AJ Maddox (an athletic four star quarterback from the 2024 recruiting class) and a transfer quarterback to be named later. Regardless, Simmons should be able to plug in right away, leading Ole Miss to a successful 2025 season and more.
Jaxson Dart, thank you for giving it your all at Ole Miss. We wish you the best. Now it's time for Austin Simmons to shine.
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