Are Jaxson Dart, Tre Harris Best SEC Passing Duo? Ole Miss WR Shares Thoughts

Ole Miss Rebels wide receiver Tre Harris believes that he and quarterback Jaxson Dart are on a special level of production thanks to some off-field chemistry.

Dec 30, 2023; Atlanta, GA, USA; Mississippi Rebels quarterback Jaxson Dart (2) holds the Peach Bowl trophy as wide receiver Tre Harris (9) catches the top after a victory against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

The stat lines will tell the story, but for Tre Harris and Jaxson Dart, the work begins long before the ball is snapped.

The wide receiver-and-quarterback duo for the Ole Miss Rebels quickly hit it off in the passing game last season after Harris transferred in from Louisiana Tech. It was in the season opener against Mercer that Harris caught four touchdown passes from Dart, and the two athletes have raved about one another ever since.

On Tuesday, Harris appeared on a segment of The Paul Finebaum Show where the host asked Harris if he thought that he and Dart formed the best duo in the SEC this season. The wideout didn't hide his thoughts, but he gave background on why he believes that is genuinely the case.

"I do believe we are the best. I'll be honest," Harris said. "Me and him have a really, really good chemistry that we worked on constantly throughout the offseason, constantly putting in routes and him throwing me the ball and things like that.

"Even off the field, we're constantly with each other, just talking about the team and how we can improve the team, and we have those times where we're just checking up on each other. That's one thing that us as a leadership, we always keep that in mind. We always want to check up on each other, check up on your brother and see how he's doing mentally without even talking about football."

Sep 2, 2023; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi Rebels quarterback Jaxson Dart (2) and wide receiver Tre Harris (9) react after a touchdown during the first half against the Mercer Bears at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports / Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports

Both Harris and Dart had career years in 2023. Despite missing a game due to injury, Harris led the Rebels in receiving yardage (985) and receiving touchdowns (8), and Dart eclipsed 3,300 passing yards and threw for 23 scores with just five interceptions.

While it's true that both players have grown throughout their college career, it's worth noting that their first year on the same team helped propel Ole Miss to an 11-win season for the first time in school history. Talent aside, it's obvious that these two have an off-the-field chemistry that helps lead the rest of the Rebel locker room.

In fact, the duo largely made their decision to return to Ole Miss for another season together, and that created somewhat of a "domino effect" with the rest of the roster.

"It was a hard decision at first," Harris said at SEC Media Days, "but once everybody decided to buy in and everybody decided to run it back, it was a really clear-cut decision for everybody. I guess you could kind of say me and Jaxson led the way. It kind of created a domino effect for a lot of our experienced veteran guys."

That decision should pay dividends for Ole Miss in 2024 as it seeks its first-ever College Football Playoff berth. If Dart and Harris can take yet another step forward in their on-field performance, that alone should be dangerous for opposing defenses this fall.