Ad Disclosure
SEC Media Days: Nick Broeker’s return boosts transfer-heavy Ole Miss
By Les East
Published:
No one in the SEC was more active in the transfer portal than Ole Miss during the offseason.
Perhaps the biggest key to the Rebels avoiding a significant drop-off from their record-setting Sugar Bowl season last year will be how well the newcomers acclimate to the program and replace players who have moved on.
But star offensive lineman Nick Broeker didn’t come from the transfer portal.
In fact, he considered entering a different portal – the one for early entrance into the NFL Draft – before deciding to play one more season for Ole Miss in 2022.
Broeker will be one of the most important players on a team in transition, and that’s why Broeker was 1 of 3 Rebels that joined head coach Lane Kiffin on the first day of SEC Media Days on Monday in Atlanta.
The Rebels have to replace 7 offensive starters and 6 defensive starters from a year ago when they won 10 regular-season games for the first time. But having Broeker anchoring the offensive line will help with the transition during preseason camp.
“We have a lot of new guys, but we have a lot of guys coming back too,” Broeker said. “We’ve got a good core of returning guys.”
Kiffin earlier thanked Broeker, who has started the last 23 games at left tackle, for coming back by moving him to guard because that is where he’s expected to play when he does arrive in the NFL next year.
So Broeker will be the left guard as he helps his coach in Year 3 of his program while getting a head-start on the job he’ll soon have as a professional.
“For me, it’s a big change, but I’ve really embraced it and enjoyed it,” Broeker said. “For future endeavors, I think it will really pay off in the end.”
Kiffin and Broeker were joined in Atlanta by wide receiver Jonathan Mingo and defensive end Cedric Johnson.
It’ll be easier to figure out who the new quarterback will be, whether Mingo will be the go-to receiver and how the rushes will be divvied up with the presence of Broeker, who’s scheduled to graduate in December, and 2 other returning starters leading a veteran line.
“I feel like at this point there’s no mountain that’s too high,” Broeker said. “This is my fourth year playing. I’ve seen a lot and learned a lot. (The offensive line) is an older group. A lot of us have been playing for a few years and now it’s our time to lead the team.”
Kiffin said all of the roster turnover makes the Rebels’ job “really challenging this year.”
“On paper, we may look like we should be decent because we filled a lot of holes with transfer portals,” Kiffin said. “That is a good system when you lose really good players and you haven’t been somewhere long enough to develop a lot of classes of depth. So we are grateful for that.”
Although the opportunity to add good players with college experience is obviously helpful, it does come with its own challenges.
“You’ve got kids coming from different parenting, and we have to put them all together as this blended family,” Kiffin said. “In fall camp, it won’t just be about teaching Xs and Os, like it always is. Your best players normally have been in your program for a year or two.
“Now with the portal, I can’t really tell you right now what it’s going to look like. We’re going to need training camp to figure that out.”
But thanks to Broeker’s decision to return, the offensive line is pretty well figured out.
Les East is a New Orleans-based football writer who covers LSU for SaturdayDownSouth.com. Follow him on Twitter @Les_East.
