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Recently-hired defensive line coach Tray Scott has hauled in his first ‘croot. JUCO D-lineman Larrell Murchison, currently of Louisburg College in North Carolina, told David Johnson of Rebels247 that he has committed to Ole Miss.
The 6’4, 277-pounder was named a first-team NJCAA All-American after recording 41 tackles, 18 tackles for loss and six sacks, all of which came in just nine games in 2016. On the flip side, he committed to a DII school out of high school in North Carolina and currently doesn’t have any Power 5 offers outside of Ole Miss, though Scott was after him while coaching at UNC.
"It was just the relationship I had built with Tray Scott," Murchison told Rebels247. "I knew I would follow him anywhere he went. It was how he kept up with me. It was everything he's told me he's done and what he plans to do. It was the relationship."
Once he arrives this summer, the junior college defensive tackle will have three years to play two at Ole Miss.
How he fits in
Murchison is listed as three-technique defensive tackle, but given the Rebels depth at the position and need for hefty bodies on the edges, he may well end up playing strong-side defensive end. Both Fadol Brown and John Youngblood—who topped the depth chart at that position in 2016—will be gone next year. A big-bodied athlete who has the length and strength to fend off offensive tackles will be a welcome addition to a front four that struggled against power-run teams like Bama, LSU and Auburn.
“Coach Freeze is telling me he needs a big body on the ball,” Murchison said. “He asked me if I was ready to bat the ball down against Alabama and get that game-winning sack.”
Murchison exhibits impressive leverage at the point of attack and also the ability to slide inside and go against slower offensive guards. His first step is fairly quick and he should add some nice depth behind Benito Jones, Breeland Speaks, Marquis Haynes and Co.