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Ole Miss Football: Top 5 spring 2019 breakout candidates

By Connor Muldowney

OXFORD, MS - SEPTEMBER 02: Head coach Matt Luke of the Mississippi Rebels takes the field before a game against the South Alabama Jaguars at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on September 2, 2017 in Oxford, Mississippi. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)
OXFORD, MS - SEPTEMBER 02: Head coach Matt Luke of the Mississippi Rebels takes the field before a game against the South Alabama Jaguars at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on September 2, 2017 in Oxford, Mississippi. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /
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The 2019 season may not be filled with crazy-high expectations, but which Ole Miss football players could break out this spring for the Rebels?

Ole Miss had its annual spring game on April 6 and fans got a glimpse into the future of the program. The Rebels showed some offensive flashes but the defense ultimately won the scrimmage, 29-25.

We got an opportunity to gauge some breakout candidates, led by the team’s quarterback as well as a talented second-year wide receiver. Will the Rebels get some breakout stars to emerge on the defensive side of the ball as well? That seems likely, especially since it showed progress in the spring scrimmage.

Who can emerge as a breakout candidate for the Rebels to close out the spring?

Although he’s not an incoming freshman, Sam Williams is new to the team as a JUCO transfer from Northeast Mississippi C.C. He ranks as the No. 8 JUCO prospect in the 2019 class and will have an immediate impact on the Rebels’ defense.

Williams was a listed as a linebacker at the JUCO level, but he’ll likely slide over to the defensive end spot for the Rebels with that big 6-foot-4.5, 250-pound frame.

Ole Miss got a good one here. While he was listed as the top defensive end from the junior college level, he was also named the NJCAA Defensive Player of the Year in 2018 after he recorded an incredible 17.5 sacks.

Ryder Anderson and Qaadir Sheppard are both back, but Williams could be sitting right behind them both, pushing for playing time.

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