clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile
Changing the Culture of Ole Miss Athletics The original Air Kiffin shirt is available here

Filed under:

Ole Miss recruiting: Commits impress at camps, Drake Davis transferring to IMG

Rebel commits show out at camps and a big-time target is headed to Florida.

By Zach Berry
Student Sports

Nike's The Opening and the Elite 11 Quarterback Competition has come and gone. But, there are still plenty of things going on before the 2015 season gets underway. Four-star defensive end Jeffrey Simmons recently camped at Mississippi State and absolutely demolished everyone. Simmons was able to showcase his improving technique and brute strength that is starting to garner a lot more attention from a lot of other Power 5 programs.

Simmons wasn't the only one of interest in that putrid wasteland of a town for a camp, Rebel commit and three-star wide receiver Daniel Crowell was also in attendance. Despite floating under the radar for most of the recruiting circuit, Crowell's hype is slowly building steam as he has already built a relationship with his future quarterback, Shea Patterson, at other 7on7 tournaments. Along with that, Crowell was tabbed the "Smooth Operator" at the MSU camp as he was just handling business like always without breaking a sweat. Most crootin experts feel that Grant Heard and the Rebels have a steal in Crowell.

Four-star DeKaylin Metcalf was in Hoover, Ala. for the National Select 7on7 Tournament and continued his tour de force. Sometimes these kinds of settings can limit a big, physical athlete like Metcalf, but his improving speed has begun to surface and has allowed him to win a lot more one on ones and just flat out run by coverage. Rivals pundits noted that he looked like he already has the body of a college player. This bodes well for Ole Miss' WRU future.

Four-star following Patterson to IMG

Well, it didn't take long for Shea Patterson to have a positive effect on things down in Bradenton, Fla. Shortly after the five-star Ole Miss commit announced he was transferring, four-star wide receiver Drake Davis announced that he would be transferring as well. Davis was at Fork Union Military Academy in Virginia last season and has played high school ball in Bay St. Louis, Miss., Baton Rouge, La. and Zachary, La.

But, what makes Davis such an intriguing crootin target is his love for another sport: soccer. Standing 6'4 and weighing 215-pounds, you figure he is a shoe-in to make is mark at the college level catching passes and then will be well on his way to the NFL, but that wasn't always the case. Davis is extremely talented at soccer and even attended a camp in Barcelona, Spain. Davis played in four matches with Fork Union's soccer team and scored five goals and had one assist. He also ran track while attending FUMA and was highly-touted in that as well (10.52 100M). Needless to say, the kid is an absolute freak and will add a dangerous element to IMG's offense.

Bianco still crootin

We are nowhere near baseball season, but Mike Bianco is still hard at work trying to get y'all to make him a more positive meme. The Rebels received two commitments this week, both from Florida. Carl Gindl, a 5'10, 175-pound outfielder from Cantonment, Fla. and Pensacola Catholic High School will be roaming the outfield soon for the Rebels after he committed to play for Bianco and Co. The 2017 rising junior was named Hitter of the Year last season by the Pensacola News Journal as he hit at a blistering .457 clip and had 19 RBIs. He was also a perfect 23-for-23 in the stolen base department.

The Rebels snagged another 2017 outfielder in Michael Spears. The 5'11, 170-pound commit hit a ridiculous .500 for Orangewood Christian School in Maitland, Fla. Spears collected 14 RBIs, scored 33 runs and slapped nine doubles. Spears, like Gindl, was perfect on the base paths as he went 17-for-17. Both Gindl and Spears are members of the Orlando Scorpions, a team that Ole Miss fans should be very familiar with now. Recent Scorpion alumni who played at Ole Miss are Will Allen, Austin Anderson, Auston Bousfield, and Sikes "WHISKEYANDMEAT" Orvis. All jokes aside, Bianco and assitant coach Carl Lafferty have done an outstanding job recruiting the state of Florida.

Five-star DT doing some crootin

It always helps when your highly-ranked croots are also crooters themselves. Five-star defensive tackle Benito Jones seems to be comfortable in this setting just like he is with invading opponent's backfields and blowing shit up. The 6'1, 275-pound tank recently spent some time in Oxford, Miss. with the aforementioned Jeffrey Simmons and Alabama commit and Meridian, Miss. native Raekwon Davis. With Jones already committed to Chris Kiffin and the Rush Men, it is no secret that he is trying to sway Simmons and Davis to join him in Oxford. Jones tweeted a picture of the three in the IPF on campus at Ole Miss and referred to them as "The Big Three". Sometimes the more simple, the better.

More Lone Star commitments on the way?

After snatching croot after croot from Texas in his four years as Ole Miss' head coach, Hugh Freeze has added two more to the 2016 class. Now, it is looking like there could be another one on the way. Four-star defensive back Jaylon Jones has made it very clear that he enjoys Oxford and Ole Miss. The 5'11, 182-pound Allen, Tex. native named a top six earlier this summer but has been flirting with the Rebels more and more since then.

On 247Sports' ever-so-popular Crystal Ball, Jones has been predicted to pick Ole Miss six times in the last two days, most notably by SB Nation's crootin guru, Bud Elliott. He recently visited Oxford and tweeted that he enjoyed his time. Secondary coach Jason Jones looks to be in very good shape for the Texan's services. And it is looking like Jones' phenomenal job could impact Matt Luke's crootin in Texas as well as Jones is teammates with No. 1 offensive lineman Greg Little.

Not to be forgotten, four-star defensive back (and good buddy of Mr. Shea Patterson) Deontay Anderson tweeted this week that he would be releasing a top five soon. The 6'1, 192-pound playmaker from Manvel, Tex. should be a name that Ole Miss fans recognize now as he has been in and out of Oxford all summer and has been very vocal about his friendship with Patterson. His teammate, D'Vaughn Pennamon just committed to the Rebels so you know he has been in his ear constantly.

Stay tuned, y'all.

[EDITOR DISCLAIMER: the poll question is in no way insinuating that I was unhappy with any of the procedures that Dr. Bo performed, just simply curious. There will be no malpractice lawsuits being handed down, I assure you]