Whiskey Wednesday’s 3-day Weekend Recruiting Hangover.

After a few months of the recruiting doldrums, it seems that we’ve suddenly stumbled upon the busy stretch of Summer recruiting season. Over the weekend, we reported on the commitments of four-star quarterback Austin Simmons (who reclassified from the 2025 class to graduate in 2023), and 2024 four-star safety Travaris Banks. But aside from those two blue-chip additions, the Rebs added two other commitments in recent days, and also lost another in-state commitment. Let’s take a look:

• First, the bad news: Picayune running back Chris Davis committed to Ole Miss on March 23, only to drop his pledge less than three months later, on June 12. Davis wasted little time announcing his next commitment, joining Stanford’s 2024 recruiting class on June 18. Davis is a nice-looking prospect, and given the Rebs’ still-thin running back room, it hurts a bit to lose him. However, Ole Miss does appear to be trending for Lancaster, TX running back Kewan Lacy, who is ranked slightly higher, according to the On3 composite.
• While Davis is replaceable, his teammate Jamonta Waller is one of the more coveted defenders in the entire country. Unfortunately for Ole Miss, the four-star linebacker/EDGE rusher committed to Florida over the weekend. Waller’s stock has absolutely exploded in recent months, elevating him from a little-known prospect to the #61 overall player in the country, according to the On3 composite. I don’t expect the Rebs to spend much time trying to win back Davis, but they’ll be fighting hard for Waller until the end. Hopefully, he pays close attention as UF absolutely tanks this Fall. Is it bad when your quarterback gets drafted #4 overall, and you still go 6-7? Seems bad.
• In decidedly more upbeat news, Ole Miss gained a commitment from EDGE rusher Cameron Clark, a 6’5, 235 lb athlete who really pops in his Hudl highlights. The Medina, Tennessee prospect has a phenomenal frame, and appears to have really solid quickness and athleticism for his size. Clark’s highlights include a lot of film at tight end, where his open-field speed, leaping ability, and all-around athleticism are on display. Clark is a three-star with reported offers from Notre Dame, Mississippi State, Mizzou, Virginia Tech, Pitt, Louisville, Cincinnati, and others.

• Ole Miss also recently added a commitment from Jude Foster, an offensive line prospect from Southern University Lab School in Baton Rouge. Foster is a three-star prospect who lists offers from Baylor, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Tulane, and several mid-majors.

• Speaking of offensive linemen, the Rebels appear to have rekindled things with an old name: former MRA tackle Jimothy Lewis. The 6’5, 300 lb Lewis is a true blue-chip offensive line prospect, with offers from Alabama, Georgia, and… well, if you have offers from those two, then you have an offer from basically everyone, right? Lewis fell off the Ole Miss radar (or vice versa) for a while when he transferred to IMG Academy in Florida. But, he’s been on campus a couple of times recently, and things appear to be getting pretty serious again.
• Another recruit who could be the next to join the Rebels’ 2024 class is EDGE rusher Maurice Davis, who recently wrapped up an official visit in Oxford. The 6’4, 215 lb Albany, Georgia defender reports offers from Texas A&M, Louisville, Cincinnati, and USF, but Ole Miss is the frontrunner according to the On3 Recruiting Prediction Thingamajig, which lists the Rebs as a 91.5% favorite to land a commitment from Davis. Davis would join Jeffrey Rush and Cameron Clark to give the Rebs a solid trio of EDGE recruits. And while Rush will likely command a big NIL number, Clark and Davis both appear to be high-ceiling guys who could be signed for relatively cheap.
• And on that note: the NIL era has required a re-thinking of the way we view recruits, in my opinion. Rather than just looking at a recruit’s offers and rankings, now it’s prudent to look at them in terms of their potential vs. the NIL funds likely required to sign them. It seems like Lane Kiffin and the Ole Miss staff realize this, and are locking down some recruits with reasonable NIL demands and a high ceiling.