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In 2013, Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze brought four five-star and seven four-star recruits to Oxford for what was a historic Rebels recruiting class.
The quartet of five stars — defensive lineman Robert Nkemdiche, offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil, wide receiver Laquon Treadwell and defensive back Tony Conner — have all played crucial roles for Ole Miss the last two years. They’re now juniors soon facing the decision to return to school or enter the NFL.
But they aren’t the only members of the Rebels 2013 class that have become major contributors.
Former four-star quarterback Ryan Buchanan and former three-star quarterback DeVante Kincade both found themselves competing with Chad Kelly for the starting job this season. Although Kelly has been named the starter, Buchanan and Kincade both saw plenty of action in the Rebels first two games and could see more moving forward.
Wide receiver Quincy Adeboyejo and tight end Evan Engram were both three-star recruits out of the 2013 class that have emerged as starters. Engram has turned into one of the best tight ends in college football, period.
Fadol Brown, unrated because he transferred from Florida International in 2013, is now a impactful starter on the Rebels stout defensive front.
As mentioned before, several players from this vaunted class will be playing on Sundays next year, while others return for their senior seasons. But regardless of which players do what, it appears this will be the 2013 recruiting class’ last season all together in Oxford.
As a result, we decided to follow the members of the 2013 class and how they play throughout the Rebels season by noting standout performances from them. Here’s how they did in Week 2 against Fresno State:
ROBERT NKEMDICHE, DL
For the second week in a row, Nkemdiche showed the type of versatile athlete he is by scoring on offense. Against the Bulldogs, Nkemdiche used his 6-foot-5, 296-pound frame to plow through the defensive line for a 1-yard rushing touchdown that put Ole Miss ahead 42-14.
However, Nkemdiche’s numbers were still modest on defense. The All-American defensive lineman recorded 2 tackles against Fresno State, one for a loss, and has yet to pick up his first sack this season.
LAREMY TUNSIL, LT
Tunsil was held out of this game due to an ongoing NCAA investigation regarding alleged contact between Tunsil and agents. This was the second game in a row that Tunsil was held out for this reason.
Freeze has not yet said whether Tunsil will play in the Rebels third game against Alabama, and made it clear that he has nothing to do with the NCAA’s investigative process.
LAQUON TREADWELL, WR
Treadwell’s slow start after recovering from a serious leg injury this offseason continued against Fresno State; however, he did show signs of progress from Week 1.
He’s still undoubtedly the Rebels top receiving target and most likely will be one of the first wideouts off the board in this year’s NFL draft, but Treadwell finished third in receiving for the Rebels against the Bulldogs, recording 5 receptions for 73 yards. He is still yet to find the end zone this season.
JORDAN WILKINS, RB
Wilkins is the starting running back in the Ole Miss backfield but that doesn’t seem to hold much weight these days. Ten different Rebels carried the ball against Fresno State as Wilkins barely led the way with 7, resulting in 40 yards.
It will be interesting to see if Wilkins is the lead guy when Ole Miss ramps up the competition or if Hugh Freeze has decided to go full-on committee mode with his backs.
RYAN BUCHANAN, QB
This might be one of the last weeks we get to write about Buchanan in this post because it appears Kelly has been declared the full-time starter moving forward in Oxford. Buchanan saw playing time for the second week in a row but did not perform nearly as well against Fresno State as he did against Tennessee-Martin.
Buchanan completed 4 of his 6 pass attempts for 38 yards but did not throw any touchdowns and had an interception, which was the only one thrown by Ole Miss in Week 2. He also added 1 rush for 3 yards.
DEVANTE KINCADE, QB
There’s a reason Freeze felt comfortable fully handing the reins over to Kelly after this game, and that’s because Kincade played just as poorly as Buchanan when given his opportunity against Fresno State at least when it came to passing the ball.
Kincade only completed 2 of his 6 passes for 8 yards and no scores. But he was the Rebels most effective weapon on the ground, picking up 48 yards on 4 carries.
QUINCY ADEBOYEJO, WR
Big day for Adeboyejo here, continuing a hot start to his season. Adeboyejo led all Ole Miss receivers against Fresno State with 5 receptions for 120 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Although nine different Rebels caught passes in Week 2, Adeboyejo has proven to be the most effective Ole Miss receiver this season and clearly has some serious chemistry with Kelly. Perhaps he will begin to take some of the attention away from Treadwell and open things up for his teammate.
Pat Donohue is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers Ole Miss and Mississippi State. Follow him on Twitter @SportsDownPat.
