Rebels in the NFL Draft

Three former Rebels have been selected in this year’s 2024 NFL draft. Although this might seem like a quiet year for Ole Miss in terms of NFL prospects, three of the Rebels have found a home in the NFL, and four signed as undrafted free agents. Let’s do a deep dive into the three Rebels that have been signed.

The first player drafted is Deantre Prince. The Mississippi native is a forced to be reckoned with. Originally from Charleston, Mississippi, Prince attended Northeast Mississippi Community College before making his way onto the Ole Miss football team. Standing at six feet tall and 185 pounds, he was able to earn five collegiate letters throughout his college career. His senior year, he started all 13 games for Ole Miss and ended his career with 145 total tackles, 100 of which were solo tackles. He also racked up a total of 21 pass break ups, one sack, two forced fumbles, and six interceptions his. After proving himself in his collegiate career, Prince got the call that every football player dreams of this past Saturday, as the Jacksonville Jaguars let him know they were selecting him as their rookie cornerback. Being the No. 153 overall pick in the fifth round, Prince briefly spoke to reporters after the draft stating that, “I’m from Mississippi, all I see is corn fields and crop dusters… going out and seeing palm trees and things like that kind of calms a man down.”  The Mississippi native and Rebel is excited about his future in the NFL and new location in Florida.

Cedric Johnson followed behind his teammate Prince in the sixth round, getting selected by the Cincinnati Bengals. This 265 pound, 6’3” defensive end is originally from Mobile, Alabama. He has earned four letters at Ole Miss. In his freshman year, he appeared in all 10 games as a reserve linebacker and tallied up a total of seven tackles and three sacks. Jumping to his sophomore year, he appeared in all 13 games, starting 11 at defensive end and played hard to earn 33 tackles and 65 sacks. In Johnson’s junior year, he kept this streak going and appeared in all Rebel games. Junior year he was able to dominate the field with 32 total tackles, 15 of which were solo. His senior year in 2023 he started in 10 games for the defense and played in 12. He was able to rack up 40 total tackles this season, saving his best season for last. When you break down all of his college career statistics together, he played 40 games and was able to tally up 111 tackles. According to the senior defensive assistant for the Bengals, Johnson was recommended highly from Ole Miss’s coaching staff as being accountable, dependable, athletic, and smart.

Similarly to Cedric Johnson, teammate Daijahn Anthony was picked up by the Cincinnati Bengals 10 picks later. Anthony also got the call of a lifetime as he was asked to come and play for the Cincinnati Bengals in the seventh round. Anthony is originally from Richmond, Virginia and previously played at Liberty before transferring to Ole Miss. He has earned four collegiate letters and stands at six feet tall and weighs 205 pounds. This beast of a player is a safety and appeared in all 13 games with 10 starts his senior season with the Rebels. He was able to complete his season and finish on the team with 61 tackles, 28 of which were solo. Anthony held the number one statistic on the Rebel team when it came to pass breakups with eight and was tied for the team lead with three interceptions. Anthony is written about and often described as a versatile player because of his speed and on-field abilities. He is fast for a hybrid player, running a 4.56 40 yard dash time, and could be a critical member of the new Bengals team. Anthony will have to fight for a spot, but Cincinnati’s head coach Zach Taylor spoke about Anthony’s draft picks saying, “Anthony’s earned it”.

Author administrator Corinne Ellington