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5 college football programs on the verge of becoming powerhouses

By Connor Muldowney

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - JANUARY 01: Head coach Dave Aranda of the Baylor Bears celebrates after defeating the Mississippi Rebels 21-7 in the Allstate Sugar Bowl at Caesars Superdome on January 01, 2022 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - JANUARY 01: Head coach Dave Aranda of the Baylor Bears celebrates after defeating the Mississippi Rebels 21-7 in the Allstate Sugar Bowl at Caesars Superdome on January 01, 2022 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /
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NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JANUARY 01: Head coach Lane Kiffin of the Mississippi Rebels reacts during the Allstate Sugar Bowl against the Baylor Bears at the Caesars Superdome on January 01, 2022 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JANUARY 01: Head coach Lane Kiffin of the Mississippi Rebels reacts during the Allstate Sugar Bowl against the Baylor Bears at the Caesars Superdome on January 01, 2022 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /

3. Ole Miss Rebels

As the Hugh Freeze era came to a disappointing end, it felt like Ole Miss was never quite going to be the same. The Rebels were close to getting back near the top of the SEC, but the violations and firing of Freeze left the program in a shaky place. There was a postseason ban and reduced scholarships and players were transferring out at a high rate.

Ole Miss hired Matt Luke in the hopes that he could be more than just a band-aid as a former player with extensive knowledge of the program. That wasn’t the case.

Luke finished 15-21 over the span of three seasons and parted ways with the Rebels after a 4-8 season in 2019.

The Rebels made the decision to hire Lane Kiffin away from FAU and it’s turned out to be a perfect fit. They went 5-5 in their first season under Kiffin and then went 10-3 and made the Sugar Bowl but lost because of a Matt Corral injury in the first half. It was a heck of a season despite the loss.

Kiffin has the program trending in the right direction after its first 10-win season since 2015 and only the third since 2000. He also signed the No. 17 recruiting class in 2021 and the 24th-best class in 2022. While the 2022 class isn’t quite as good as the previous cycle’s, Kiffin made up for that with a heavy hand in the portal. Heck, he’s even given himself the nickname “Portal King” because of it.

Ole Miss is going to be very good for a while as long as Kiffin is in charge.

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