OXFORD -- A year ago, Ole Miss didn't get to spring drills before COVID-19 shut campus down.

In fact, it was late August before Lane Kiffin's first real practice as Ole Miss' head coach. A 5-5 season, one capped by an Outback Bowl win over Indiana, later, expectations are high in and around Oxford for the Rebels.

However, as spring drills began on a cool, wet Tuesday, Kiffin isn't addressing expectations with his team -- at least not yet, anyway.

"There's a lot of basic fundamental work that they missed (a year ago)," Kiffin said. "Depth charts are in pencil. We're a lot further away than you are in August from having to play and get things ready. This is an opportunity where you end up playing guys in a number of defensive spots sometimes, especially defensively, looking at different personnel and just get guys better with the fundamentals of football, with scheme being secondary."

Kiffin said it's good to have energy around the program, noting that with that comes expectations "as a team and as individuals."

Kiffin said there's an emphasis on establishing depth at every position this spring, especially on defense, with the hope that the Rebels won't have a repeat of 2020, where multiple players were routinely playing 70-80 snaps per game. Kiffin said the Rebels return more than 90 percent of last year's roster along with 14 mid-year scholarship enrollees. Twelve of those 14 are defensive players.

"I think that's going to be better depth," Kiffin said. "I think that's going to be specifically on defense and the back-seven with new players coming in there and that's going to create competition and make everybody better, hopefully."

Ole Miss struggled up front on defense in 2020, but the Rebels worked to address that via recruiting, adding a number of prospects they hope can contribute immediately.

Kiffin said junior college transfer defensive linemen Isaiah Iton and Jamond Gordon are learning how to line up at this early stage, but both players have "shown on film to be really talented players and that's why I recruited them, so we'll see."

Expectations are obviously high for quarterback Matt Corral, who will finally get a chance to work with an offensive coordinator for the second straight year. Corral threw for 3,337 yards and 29 touchdowns in 2020.

"I'd like to think that would help," Kiffin said, noting Corral missed out on spring last year. "I'd like to think if he'd had that, he would've played better. Now I do know some issues that have popped up, having a season playing with him, and so we're able to work on those and hopefully be able to take the next step."

Corral was terrific in eight of 10 games last season, though interceptions plagued him in losses at Arkansas and at LSU.

"Instead of being an elite college quarterback, whatever, seven or eight of the 10 games, he can do it all the time," Kiffin said.

Kiffin said his early impressions of Corral's backup, freshman Luke Altmyer, have been positive.

"He's a very natural thrower," Kiffin said. "He's very smart in meetings. The ability to throw the ball, I think, there's probably too much credit given to coaching on that. You see a guy throw and his natural release and stuff, to me, they're really good at it or they're not. You're not going to a lot about it with coaching. It's good to see that he is natural and smooth and the ball comes out of his hand really good."

Notes:

-- Kiffin said John Rhys Plumlee dropped by this morning "to say hi to the quarterback meeting." However, Plumlee is playing baseball this spring and Kiffin said he will let Plumlee fully commit to baseball this spring. Kiffin said he doesn't know what role Plumlee will play in 2021, noting he'll sit down with him after the baseball season and figure out a plan.

-- Kiffin said Navy transfer Jake Springer has shown a nose for the football and the ability to help in a number of different positions.

-- Kiffin said tight end Casey Kelly, running back Jerrion Ealy and defensive back Daylen Gill and Demarko Williams are all for the spring. Other players are limited or will return at some point in the spring.

-- Ole Miss returns to the practice field Thursday before an open practice Saturday at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Spring drills wrap up with the Grove Bowl on April 24 at 4 p.m.