Nick Saban Reveals Why Ole Miss Can Compete With SEC's Elite in 2024

Coach-turned-analyst Nick Saban recently revealed why he thinks the Ole Miss Rebels can compete with the big dogs of the SEC this season.

Oct 2, 2021; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin talks with Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban before the start of an NCAA college football game at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Butch Dill-USA TODAY Sports / Butch Dill-USA TODAY Sports

The Ole Miss Rebels have experienced some strong times under head coach Lane Kiffin, but they have yet to get over the hump and compete for a conference championship under his leadership.

Ole Miss' last conference championship came in 1963, and the program has never appeared in the SEC Championship Game since its advent in 1992. The Rebels have high hopes for the upcoming season, eyeing a College Football Playoff berth, but can they finally compete and take down some of the elite names within the SEC?

Nick Saban thinks so. The former Alabama head coach is now an ESPN analyst, and he spoke about the Rebels on SEC Network during SEC Media Days.

"I think this is the first time Ole Miss can really match-up up front," Saban said, per Mike Rodak of 247Sports. "It's always been their issue. They'll win 11 games. They'll lose to Georgia, they'll lose to us because they can't match-up up front. They can this year. They're going to look more like an SEC team."

That's high praise from one of the greatest college football coaches of all time, and it shows that Lane Kiffin's strategy in the transfer portal may pay off this season. The Rebels added strength and size along both sides of the trenches, securing names like Walter Nolen and Chris Hardie on the defensive side and Julius Buelow and Diego Pounds on the offensive line.

That's not to mention edge rusher Princely Umanmielen and fellow offensive lineman Nate Kalepo. These new faces paired with the talent that returns for the Rebels were brought in to help shore up the front lines, and that was a primary goal for Kiffin after Ole Miss fell to Georgia in embarassing fashion last season.

"One of the big things was I just thought should happen in a few games over our time here, really with Alabama and Georgia, was there was a length and size issue," Kiffin said Monday at SEC Media Days. "Again, we got to perform really well, practice really well, and coach really well. But we're going to look better coming off the bus I guess. We'll have more length and size."

The ultimate goal for Ole Miss this season should be reaching the 12-team College Football Playoff, but it will have to navigate the waters of the SEC in order to do that. The Rebels will open their season at home against the FCS Furman Paladins on Aug. 31.