Note: Rebel Grove's coverage of the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl is presented by Comer Heating and Air and Southern Air Conditioning & Heating
ATLANTA — Jaxson Dart has leverage.
It’s as simple as that.
He also has suitors. Those suitors are desperate. In case you haven’t noticed, there’s not exactly a surplus of quarterbacks at any level these days.
There’s a reason the Cleveland Browns pulled Joe Flacco out of retirement. There’s a reason the Chicago Bears are considering ignoring every warning sign — and there are dozens of them — and making Caleb Williams the face of their franchise this spring. If Dart jumped into the transfer portal between now and Tuesday, he’d most certainly get calls from programs such as Florida State, Miami, Ohio State and others.
So, yes, on the eve of the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium versus Penn State, Ole Miss’ quarterback has beaucoup leverage.
He’d be a fool not to use it, and it’s obvious Dart is no fool.
Still, if you’re an Ole Miss fan, you likely shouldn’t panic. Everyone on all sides knows it’s in everyone’s best interests for Dart to return to Ole Miss in 2024 as the Rebels’ quarterback in an all-in season, if there’s ever been one.
Obviously, it’s in Ole Miss’ interest to lock Dart up for 2024. The alternatives aren’t awesome. Walker Howard, who transferred in from LSU 11 months ago, didn’t knock Spencer Sanders out of the backup spot until Sanders became academically ineligible after the fall semester. Austin Simmons is still very much a pup, and while his upside is very high, Ole Miss didn’t assemble the defensive talent out of the transfer portal over the last few weeks to go with a redshirt freshman who is still young enough to go to the high school prom.
Next fall would be Dart’s third season in the same offense, with the same head coach, presumably the same offensive coordinator, multiple returning weapons, at least one new one and — almost certainly — an improved, refurbished offensive line.
Dart is a budding NFL prospect, but he still has questions he must answer before a franchise takes him early in a draft, presumably the one in April 2025. People around him, I’m told, know it wouldn’t be ideal to go to a third school — Dart began his college career at USC — this spring to learn a new offense and re-establish his role in a new program.
But again, Dart has leverage, and he’s going to exert it. Anyone in his position would.
In other words, Dart is going to get paid commensurate to his value. It’s still a relatively new thing in college sports. It’s why we call it Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) instead of what it really is — salary. Ole Miss has been and is ahead of the curve in this regard. The Grove Collective has fast become a model NIL organization. The Ole Miss fan base hasn’t been this motivated since, well, maybe ever. I’m no Ole Miss historian, but in my 16 years on the beat, I’ve never sensed this much synergy between the program and its fans. The Grove Collective and Lane Kiffin have challenged the fans, and the fans have responded. The results — Walter Nolen, Princely Umanmielen, Juice Wells, Tyler Baron, et al — speak for themselves.
However, in any budget, there are limits, and sometimes, one must borrow from Peter to pay (Christopher) Paul, so to speak. Kiffin likes to talk about a pro mindset. He makes references to free agency and the like. It makes sense. The son of NFL legendary defensive mastermind Monte Kiffin was once the head coach of the Oakland Raiders. An organizational mistake at quarterback — the late Al Davis insisted on former LSU quarterback Jamarcus Russell, who turned into one of the biggest busts in NFL history — led to his demise in Oakland.
In the current iteration of the NFL, running backs are not getting the big bucks. Quarterbacks, edge rushers, cover corners and left tackles are. The New York Giants elected to invest long-term into quarterback Daniel Jones and sign one of the league’s best running backs, Saquon Barkley, to a one-year, $11 million contract that includes a $2 million signing bonus.
Barkley wasn’t pleased, but the Giants couldn’t afford to lose Jones. Just look at this season. With Jones down with a season-ending injury, the Giants have floundered with Tommy DeVito and Tyrod Taylor under center. Replacing running backs, NFL personnel have learned, is a much easier task than finding a new quarterback.
As The Athletic noted in an Oct. 19 story, a Super Bowl champion hasn’t had a Pro Bowl-caliber running back on its roster since Seattle won with Marshawn Lynch in 2014. The last time the MVP of the Super Bowl was a running back was Denver’s Terrell Davis — 26 years ago.
Ole Miss obviously has a decision to make regarding running back Quinshon Judkins, who has rushed for more than 1,000 yards in each of his two college seasons. Judkins hasn’t committed to returning to Ole Miss — at least not publicly — and essentially no-commented on Thursday when he was asked during a press conference at the Westin Peachtree Plaza in downtown Atlanta.
Maybe Ole Miss can afford both Dart and Judkins. Ole Miss doesn’t want to lose Judkins. The Rebels love his value as a runner, a pass-catcher and a pass-blocker. Further, per sources, people inside the program would not like the perception of losing Judkins to a rival program via the transfer portal.
But if there’s a decision to make, it’s an easy one. In fact, it's a no-brainer. Ole Miss would love to have Judkins back in 2023. Replacing him would be difficult.
But it’s Dart who has the ultimate leverage, and there’s no getting around it. Ole Miss simply must have Dart back. Replacing him would almost certainly be impossible, at least on short notice and in time for 2024 and the first 12-team College Football Playoff.
It’s a reminder that this is a new era in college football, one in which the players have the majority of the power.
Regardless, barring one hell of an upset, it’ll get done. Ole Miss has no choice.
