Rebels OC Charlie Weis Jr. Reveals 'Biggest Challenge' of QB Competition

Ole Miss Rebels offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. talked about quarterbacks during his recent media availability.

OXFORD, Miss. -- The buzz about the Ole Miss Rebels this offseason has primarily centered around their quarterback competition. 

Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin revamped his quarterback room this offseason by adding former transfers Spencer Sanders (Oklahoma State) and Walker Howard (LSU) to give his incumbent starter Jaxson Dart some competition entering his junior season.

The battle got even thicker in June when 2023 four-star quarterback Austin Simmons announced that he was flipping his commitment to Ole Miss after pledging to the Florida Gators in the spring.

Simmons is competing in his first SEC fall camp as a 17-year-old true freshman after his 5.34 GPA allowed him to reclassify from the 2025 class to 2023. 

Ole Miss offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. was made available to speak with the media on Friday and the assistant gave a glowing assessment of Simmons, who has hit the ground running in fall practices.

"It takes a special kid to do what he's done," Weis told reporters. "He's a very intelligent kid, that was highly public in the media, but it's really helped him. He's got a great mindset and mentality. He did a great job of getting the playbook and learning the plays when he got here.

"Overall, he's done a tremendous job, all things considered, with his situation. He's getting better each and every day."

Weis also gave high praise for Dart, who is entering his second year in Kiffin's offense.

"Jaxson's so much further ahead than he was at this point last year," Weis said. "People underestimate having a year in a system. Knowing plays, being comfortable, and the things we're operating right there... As [Jaxson] has grown confident in his play, he's allowed himself to become a more vocal leader and take some ownership of the team. It's been really cool to see."

Weis expressed what the biggest challenge is when handling the ongoing quarterback battle.

"The biggest challenge is you have four guys that I feel are very high-quality football players that can win games, and you've got to get all four of them ready to go," Weis said. "You've got to give them opportunities to show to their teammates what they can do and what they can provide for the team.

"Managing those reps and opportunities for those guys has definitely been a challenge, but it's a very fun room to work with... These guys have handled [the competition] in a very mature way, and they come in with the right mindset each and every day."

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You can follow Ben King on Twitter at @BKing_2023.

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