Ole Miss Football: 3 takeaways from Egg Bowl win over Mississippi State

1. A.J. Brown set Ole Miss single-season receiving record on Thanksgiving

There have been some great receivers that have suited up for Ole Miss over the years. Players like Donte Moncrief, Laquon Treadwell, Mike Wallace, and Chris Collins have put up huge numbers in a Rebels uniform. But they might just take a backseat to a new contender for the title of greatest Rebels wide receiver in the school’s history.

On Thursday night in the Egg Bowl, A.J. Brown caught six passes for 167 yards and a touchdown. Before the end of the first half, Brown broke the single-season record for receiving yards that was held by Treadwell, who now plays in the NFL for the Minnesota Vikings.

After earning game time as a true freshman last season, Brown has emerged as the best receiver on the Rebels roster and one of the top pass-catchers in the entire country. After finishing the first half with five receptions for 90 yards, he added a 77-yard touchdown catch in the second half and finished the game as Jordan Ta’amu‘s favorite target.

With another season in Oxford before Brown can declare for the NFL Draft, he has a legitimate shot at overtaking Shay Hodge as the career receiving yards leader for Ole Miss. He ends 2017 with 1664 career yards, only 982 yards behind the record set by Fields between 2006 and 2009. With a similar performance in 2018, Brown will easily go down as the best receiver among a select group in Ole Miss history.