SPORTS

Five newcomers primed to break out for the Rebels

Riley Blevins
The Clarion-Ledger
D.J. Jones (93)

OXFORD –Ole Miss returns 16 starters and even more contributors from last season's nine-win team.

That doesn't exactly create many opportunities for first-year players to make an early impact. But a handful of newcomers — freshmen, redshirted players and juco transfers — likely clawed their way into some serious playing time this fall with standout performances during spring practices.

Here is a look at the Rebels' top five newcomers for this season.

Breeland Speaks

The former four-star recruit and Dandy Dozen selection redshirted during his freshman year, and Ole Miss isn't in the situation where it needs Speaks to see serious playing time this season given its depth along the defensive line.

But the 6-foot-3, 313-pounder is probably going to see his fair share of snaps this fall regardless after coaches lauded his development during spring practice.

Speaks even drew some lofty comparisons from defensive coordinator Dave Wommack.

"When you put No. 5 (Nkemdiche) and No. 9 (Speaks) in there, you can't tell a whole lot of difference from just their body size," Wommack said. "Breeland is going to get a lot of reps for us. Very athletic."

While he likely won't start, Speaks will be thrown into the Rebels' defensive tackle rotation that will include Nkemdiche, Issac Gross, Woodrow Hamilton, D.J. Jones and more.

Javon Patterson

The freshman early enrollee had a trial by fire of sorts during his first college practices this spring.

Ole Miss was down to just eight healthy offensive linemen at one point this spring, so Patterson not only got his fair share of first-team reps right away, but took snaps with the second and third units as well.

And he impressed.

The former five-star offensive guard and Dandy Dozen selection likely garnered more praise from Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze than any other newcomer.

Patterson's continued development could go a long way in helping the Rebels this fall. The offensive line was a sore spot last season, giving up 31 sacks. There's a good chance Patterson starts right away in attempts to fix that.

Tony Bridges

From a distance, he looks like Laquon Treadwell.

He's donning the same No. 1 jersey. He's 6-foot, 185 pounds. Then you realize the player is jogging over to the defensive side of practice.

There are plenty of reasons why Bridges was ranked the No. 4 overall juco prospect in the country when he signed with Ole Miss out of Gulf Coast in December, but primarily his size and physicality.

Bridges took first-team reps from Day 1 in Oxford, and he'll likely stay there, taking over for the departed All-American Senquez Golson.

Bridges is probably far more physical than Golson. He plays the cornerback position like a free safety — racing to the line of scrimmage to pop a wide-out, and he's never afraid to stick his nose in run support.

Coaches praised Bridges all spring, but his one consistent knock was that he's sometimes over-aggressive. It resulted in a handful of big plays for the offense during scrimmages.

Akeem Judd

In order for Judd to have a breakout season this fall, he doesn't need to get 20 carries and post at least 100 yards a game — because he likely won't.

Senior Jaylen Walton returns as Ole Miss' starting running back. Behind him, sophomore Jordan Wilkins looks like he'll be the No. 2 option.

But Judd, who redshirted last season after transferring from Georgia Military College, could be the Rebels' change-of-pace guy.

The Rebels have run with much smaller backs for a few years now. Walton is 5-foot-8, 172 pounds. The 5-foot-11, 185-pound I'Tavius Mathers received the second-most carries last year, but transferred to Middle Tennessee State.

Judd checks in at 5-foot-11, 222 pounds.

He could help the Rebels on third-and-short and goal-line situations in the fall, and bring a physical piece that was missing a year ago.

D.J. Jones

A grin seemingly crawled across Freeze's face every time he talked about Jones this spring.

It's easy to understand why.

Jones, the former third-best juco prospect out of East Mississippi, possesses a rare blend of strength and athleticism.

The 6-foot, 324-pounder hasn't played a snap of Division I football but was already tabbed as one of the 15 strongest players in the nation by NFL.com. Jones reports a 440-pound bench press max and a 650-pound squat.

But he's not all brawn.

"That's one athletic dude," Freeze said. "He can move. He's very quick-twitched."

Jones, who flipped from Florida State to Ole Miss on juco signing day, worked some with the first team during spring. If he doesn't start at defensive tackle, he'll certainly see his fair share of snaps this season.

Contact Riley Blevins at rblevins@jackson.gannett.com. Follow @Riley_Blevins on Twitter.