Which five Bulldogs would Ole Miss add to its roster?
OXFORD – Some of the most interesting debates begin with the question "what if?"
So, with the 2015 football season lurking on the horizon, The Clarion-Ledger asks what if Ole Miss could choose five Mississippi State players to add to its roster and vice versa?
The following list is meant to start the debate, not necessarily end it. Feel free to comment on with your own selections.
Justin Malone
Ole Miss' offensive line struggles a season ago were well documented.
The Rebels gave up 31 sacks in 2014, which ranked 12th in the Southeastern Conference. Having a player like Malone on roster would go a long way in solving some of those issues.
The 6-foot-7, 320-pounder is probably MSU's best offensive lineman. He's probably its most experienced, too.
He started 12 games last year at guard, and has made 16 total starts in his career. He'd have more, too, if he didn't break his foot in the 2013 season opener.
But it's his versatility that would make Malone a perfect fit for Ole Miss. He can play both guard and tackle.
So, if Fahn Cooper proves this summer he's a much improved option at right tackle, Malone moves down to right guard.
If Rod Taylor emerges as a legitimate option at guard, Malone could bump out to tackle.
Chris Jones
Ole Miss doesn't necessarily need Chris Jones.
Not by any stretch.
But Ole Miss doesn't pass up on a guy like Jones, either.
The Rebels are deep with interior defensive lineman – Robert Nkemdiche, D.J. Jones, Issac Gross, Woodrow Hamilton and more. It's not a position of need.
But imagine the 6-foot-6, 308-pound Jones lined up just feet away from the 6-foot-4, 296-pound Nkemdiche. That's two potential first-round draft picks on the same defensive line. Good luck, opposing offensive lines.
Both players haven't put up the kind of numbers many expected when the pair of five-stars arrived at their respective campuses. One reason for that may be the number of double teams both face.
You put them both on the same defensive line, and you can't double team them both.
Aeris Williams
Ole Miss' rushing statistics weren't pretty last fall.
The Rebels averaged 4.6 yards per carry, which was good enough for seventh in the Southeastern Conference. Ole Miss also ranked 75th in the nation in rushing yards per game.
If the Rebels had Williams, they probably don't have to worry about the running back position for the next few years.
Williams redshirted during his freshman year, but he arrived in Starkville with a long and winding list of recruiting accolades – a four-star recruit, the state's Mr. Football pick, a Dandy Dozen selection and more.
Ole Miss signed four-star running back Eric Swinney in its 2015 recruiting class. The two could make for a dangerous duo for years to come.
Gerri Green
Ole Miss has some idea of what the middle linebacker position will look like this season.
But the future at the spot is unknown, and as a result it's a major priority for the 2016 recruiting class.
The Rebels swung and missed on their hopeful middle linebacker of the future in Leo Lewis, who backed out of his Ole Miss pledge just days before signing day and instead inked with the Bulldogs.
Green would probably start at middle linebacker this year. And if not, certainly for the next few seasons.
The Rebels lost two starting linebackers from last year's squad. With little depth, Ole Miss moved former defensive end C.J. Johnson there this spring.
Dak Prescott
Kiss that quarterback competition goodbye.
It'd be near impossible to argue that Prescott wouldn't be the very first player Ole Miss would snatch up if it could.
The fifth-year senior is heralded as one of the top players in all of college football. He's a Heisman Trophy candidate. He's simply the best quarterback in the SEC.
The statistics speak for themselves. Prescott passed for 3,449 yards and 27 touchdowns last year en route to setting 12 Mississippi State school records last year.
He also rushed for 986 and 14 touchdowns, which would a whole new wrinkle to the Rebels' offense.
Mississippi State has its fair share of offensive weapons, but putting Prescott on the field with Laquon Treadwell and Evan Engram simply seems unfair.
Prescott's presence may also take some pressure of Ole Miss' defense, which returns mostly all the pieces that led the nation in scoring defense a year ago.
Contact Riley Blevins at rblevins@jackson.gannett.com. Follow @Riley_Blevins on Twitter.