Ole Miss Football: 5 takeaways from Rebels’ spring 2018

Ole Miss football is finished with spring practice and the Rebels are now looking ahead to the 2018 season. What did we learn this spring?

Matt Luke is in his first season as the full-time head coach, removing the interim tag after the 2017 campaign. The Rebels did, however, lose some big names to transfers with the biggest being former five-star quarterback Shea Patterson.

Despite losing Patterson, the hopes are still high for the Rebels entering the 2018 campaign. No, there won’t be a bowl game for Ole Miss to look forward to as the Rebels are still facing a postseason ban, but they may have some potential top NFL draft prospects on the offensive side of the ball which could make things exciting as they play spoiler this year.

Ole Miss won’t be a pushover in the SEC despite the postseason ban and transfers, but will they have enough to contend for the conference crown?

What’d we learn about the Rebels this spring?

5. Defense showed signs of improvement

After having one of the worst seasons, defensively, in school history, Ole Miss knew it had to hit the film room immediately to make room for improvements.

The Rebels finished with the seventh-worst run defense in college football last season while allowing 459 yards of total offense. The pass defense wasn’t the issue, but stopping the run was something the Rebels just couldn’t figure out.

While the offense had its moments in the spring game, the defense stepped up with a couple of big interceptions and crucial stops, showing signs of life against a top-tier offensive unit.