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An Early Look At The 2025 SEC Football Season
As we enter the summer, there are only 74 days until another season of college football is among us. The off-season has already brought a lot of activity between Ole Miss and Mississippi State with some roster changes. Here’s an outlook for the 2025 season for both teams:
Ole Miss
The Rebels’ 2024 campaign was a historic one for the program. The Landsharks finished with a 10-3 overall record including a 26-14 win in the Egg Bowl in Oxford. The Rebels’ came up just short from the 12-team College Football Playoff, instead ending their season with a dominant 52-20 win in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl over the Duke Blue Devils.
Ole Miss made significant roster changes for the upcoming season. After losing 18 starters from the 2024 squad to either the NFL Draft or the transfer portal, The Rebels’ recruited hard from the portal themselves, bringing in several key additions including Clemson DB Tavoy Feagin, Louisiana-Monroe Safety Wydett Williams, and more.
The biggest loss from last season for Ole Miss was longtime quarterback and now Ole Miss legend Jaxson Dart. In three seasons with the Rebels, Dart set many program records. Dart is now 1st in Ole Miss wins by a starting quarterback (28), has the highest winning percentage by a starting quarterback (.737), 1st in career total offense (12,115) and 1st in career passing yards (10,617).
Although the Rebs are losing the face of their program in Dart, sophomore Austin Simmons will be ready to fill his shoes. Last year as a Redshirt freshman, Simmons appeared in nine games for the Rebels, going 19-of-32 (59.4 percent) passing on the year for 282 yards and two touchdowns, gaining valuable SEC experience.
The Landsharks will open up their season on Aug. 30 in Oxford vs. Georgia State.
Mississippi State
The Bulldogs are entering year two of the Jeff Lebby era, where last season wasn’t much to remember for State. The Dawgs went through a rebuild season where they went 2-10 with wins over Eastern Kentucky and UMass at Davis Wade Stadium.
State has been working hard in the portal and bringing in additions to build Lebby’s roster. Some key players include South Alabama RB Fluff Bothwell, Purdue OL Jaekwon Bouldin, Virginia OL Blake Steen, and more. The main focus for the portal in the off-season for State has been upgrading the offensive line.
At the quarterback position, Baylor transfer Blake Shapen appeared in four games with four starts before missing the rest of the season due to injury. This season, he will compete with Florida State transfer Luke Kromenhoek and Class of 2025 4 star commit Kamario Taylor, who’s already shown ample potential.
The Bulldogs will begin the 2025 season on the road as they travel to Hattiesburg to face in-state foe Southern Miss on Aug. 30.
Egg Bowl 2025
This upcoming season’s Egg Bowl will be different than in the past. The game will be played on Friday, Nov. 28 at 11 a.m. CT at Davis Wade Stadium. This will be the second straight season that the Egg Bowl will be played on Black Friday.
