Former Auburn Commit Has Ole Miss ‘No. 1’ on His List

Former Auburn Commit Has Ole Miss ‘No. 1’ on His List originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

The Ole Miss football team is going through a bit of a rebuild this offseason after losing key players like Jaxson Dart, Walter Nolen, Trey Amos and Tre Harris to the NFL. Several other notable players either graduated or left in the transfer portal as well.

This has caused head coach Lane Kiffin and his staff to reshuffle quite a bit, but the Rebels landed one of the best transfer classes in the country. Kiffin is also showing improvement with high school recruiting, as he currently has 14 hard commits in the class of 2026.

Among these players are five four-star recruits and nine three-star prospects.

Recently, Ole Miss has put their hat in the ring for four-star linebacker JaMichael Garrett, who recently de-committed from Hugh Freeze and the Auburn Tigers. Garrett told Rivals that the Rebels are soaring up his list as he nears a decision.

"Ole Miss is No. 1 on my list. Ole Miss is right there," Garrett said.

Garrett is also being highly pursued by rival SEC programs like Texas A&M, LSU, Tennessee and Vanderbilt, as well as other powers like Colorado and Miami. However, he gave high praise to Ole Miss defensive coordinator Pete Golding.

"Coach Golding is a coach that can help me get to the next level — the NFL — and on my official visit, we did an NFL-style meeting where I had to break down my junior season film to the entire defensive staff, and that was the highlight of my official visit,” Garrett said. “The numbers there don’t lie. Their defense over the past couple of years has shown why they’re a top defense in the nation. I like that a lot.”

The Rebels already have four-star linebacker Izayia Williams committed in the class of 2026, but the team will need more than one promising prospect to replace Suntarine Perkins when he inevitably leaves for the NFL Draft next offseason. Garrett could be that player for Kiffin and Ole Miss.

Related: Arch Manning Sends Clear Message on Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss Ahead of Season

Related: Ole Miss Football Facing Crucial Concern After Losing Jaxson Dart

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 19, 2025, where it first appeared.