Lane Kiffin Shares High Praise On LB Suntarine Perkins' Development

Ole Miss Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin likes what he's seen from linebacker Suntarine Perkins in 2024.

Sep 14, 2024; Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA; Mississippi Rebels linebacker Suntarine Perkins (4) during pregame activity against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images / Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Suntarine Perkins is a bit of a hybrid player for the No. 19 Ole Miss Rebels, meaning he can play almost any position on the football field. Just look at his high school tape.

Is Perkins more of a linebacker, edge rusher or a mixture of both? At the end of the day, it doesn't really matter because he's getting the job done in his second year at Ole Miss. Recently, head coach Lane Kiffin heaped some heavy praise on his sophomore defender and how he has developed as a player.

"I think Perkins has done an amazing job," Kiffin said on Monday. "I think he played 80 snaps at LSU and covered punts and kickoffs, with us not having Princely [Umanmielen]. Which is not ideally what we want to do and why I think Princely would have made such a difference in that game because Perkins is fresher in it too.

"He's done an amazing job. He's just like in high school when we went and watched him play. He can play like every play on offense and defense. It's just really amazing how he's wired inside."

READ MORE: Ole Miss Football Reveals Uniform Combination For Road Game vs. Arkansas

Perkins did play both sides of the football when he suited up for Raleigh (Miss.) High School, leading his team to a state championship in 2022 as a linebacker and running back. He was obviously recruited at the former of those two positions, but in the state title game his senior year, Perkins rushed for 331 yards and four touchdowns on 32 carries.

The young defender showed flashes of excellence last season as a freshman, racking up 38 total tackles and 3.5 sacks on the year. Perhaps his most famous performance came in an Ole Miss loss against Alabama in 2023 where he registered two sacks of Crimson Tide quarterback Jalen Milroe.

This year, however, Perkins has really burst onto the scene. He already has 41 tackles and a whopping 12 tackles for loss alongside 8.5 sacks for a loss of 50 yards, and he is coming off a game that saw him earn SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Week thanks to his efforts against Oklahoma.

The combination of speed and strength that Perkins has will be put to the test this weekend against a speedy quarterback in Taylen Green of the Arkansas Razorbacks. Ole Miss has yet to see a quarterback with Green's scrambling ability this season, and Perkins (along with the rest of the Rebel front seven) will be critical in slowing down his big-play capabilities.

Kickoff on Saturday between Ole Miss and Arkansas is scheduled for 11 a.m. CT, and the game will be televised on ESPN.