High Praise From Tebow: Is Matt Corral the Best Quarterback in Ole Miss History?

The former Florida quarterback and SEC Network analyst thinks that there are some big shoes to fill in Oxford this season.

Have the Ole Miss Rebels just bid farewell to their best quarterback in school history? Tim Tebow seems to think so.

The college football analyst appeared on SEC Now during the conference’s media day on Wednesday, and a topic of discussion was which SEC team had the most to replace this season. The former Florida standout, who lost to the Rebels in 2008 before winning a national championship, felt it was Ole Miss. 

“I’m really interested to see what Ole Miss looks like," Tebow said. "It’s such a successful season last year, but you’re losing [offensive coordinator] Jeff Lebby. I think that’s a huge loss. And then, you’re also trying to replace probably the best quarterback in school history—and you’re doing it with two very different guys. One that is a talented pocket passer. The other, Jaxson Dart, is very talented but didn’t have a good spring game and still has to figure a few things out.

“So that’s a lot of question marks for me, but I still think they can figure it out. They’ve got enough talent to still be very scary.”

Matt Corral, Tebow's aforementioned "best quarterback in school history," was selected by the Carolina Panthers in this year’s NFL Draft. He started all 13 games for the Ole Miss last season, throwing for 3,349 yards and 20 touchdowns alongside ground numbers of 614 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Matt Corral

Corral isn't the only talented quarterback who has come through Oxford, however. 

Archie and Eli Manning were both major parts in Ole Miss football history, so much so they are two of three players who have their jerseys retired at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. There is also a street on campus that bears the family name: "Manning Way." 

Eli won the 2003 Maxwell Award and set or tied 47 Rebel records during his time in Oxford. He went on the be the highest pick in school history—No. 1 in the 2004 NFL Draft.

 

His father Archie, meanwhile, was selected No. 2 by the New Orleans Saints in 1971. He threw for 4,753 yards and 31 touchdowns in his three years at Ole Miss, setting multiple SEC records.

So, is Matt Corral the best quarterback in Ole Miss history? Regardless, his heir under center will have some big shoes to fill this fall.

You can read the original story from Sports Illustrated here. 

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You can follow John Macon on Twitter at @JMakeGillespie. 

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