3-star OL Makylan Pounders flips to Ole Miss from Mississippi State

Makylan Pounders committed to Mississippi State earlier this year in April and has been solid throughout the 2020 season with the Bulldogs. Now, the Byhalia (Miss.) offensive tackle has re-opened his recruitment and has chosen to join the Lane Train momentum in Oxford by committing to the Rebels.

Pounders ultimately chose Ole Miss over notable offers from Arkansas, LSU, Mississippi State, and Missouri. The 2020 3A MAC All-State selection was also fielding interest from Alabama, Florida, and Kentucky.

Mississippi’s No. 19th-ranked prospect is a huge win for Lane Kiffin and offensive line coach Randy Clements not only because of the skill set that he is bringing with him to Oxford, but being able to flip a long-time commit this late in the process is indicative of the program’s momentum in just year one.

Pounders joins Cedrick Nicely and Micah Pettus as the third offensive lineman in the Rebels’ 2021 class.

How does he fit in?

The 6-foot-5, 275-pound offensive tackle brings a ton of upside to Kiffin’s first recruiting class. He possesses plenty of athleticism and finishes blocks with a powerful punch. He can get lateral quickly when pulling as a lead blocker and once he gets to the second level, if he gets his hands on a linebacker or defensive back, it’s over more times than not.

The Commercial Appeal and Clarion-Ledger Dandy Dozen selection has the body type that you look for in a Power 5 offensive lineman. He’s long, built well from top-to-bottom, moves well for a guy his size, and shows that he’s more than willing to get his hands dirty in the trenches.

The classic cliche of “he has a mean streak” holds true here and I look for Pounders to be able to benefit greatly from a year with Wilson Love and the rest of the strength and conditioning staff before being a multi-year starter for Ole Miss.

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