Ole Miss Year-In-Review: What Did the Rebels Accomplish in 2024?

Today is the last day of 2024, so it's worth taking a look back at Ole Miss' athletic calendar this year.

Nov 9, 2024; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi Rebels fans attempt to tear down the goal post after defeating the Georgia Bulldogs at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images / Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

It has been an eventful 2024 on Planet Earth, and Oxford, Mississippi, is no exception to that rule.

The Ole Miss Rebels have had their fair share of ups and downs this calendar year, but with today being New Year's Eve, what did the athletic department accomplish over the last 365 days? Let's take a look below.

1. Beating Georgia in football was, without a doubt, the biggest highlight.

Although Ole Miss fell short of reaching the College Football Playoff this season, it did claim a rather historic win over the Georgia Bulldogs in November. At the time, this win seemed to put the Rebels in a very strong position to reach the playoff, but a loss to Florida two weeks later derailed that momentum.

Still, taking down one of the giants in the sport is not easy to do, especially since Georgia managed to punch its own ticket to the CFP. The on-field celebration after the win featured the goal posts being torn down at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium and paraded to The Square. Playoff or not, those memories will last a lifetime.

2. Chris Beard concluded his first season as the men's basketball head coach.

It's pretty clear that Ole Miss men's basketball has momentum under Beard's leadership, even though it failed to reach the NCAA Tournament in the first year of his tenure. As of this writing, the Rebels are coming off a tough road loss to the Memphis Tigers before opening conference play on Saturday, but Beard seems to have the program moving in the right direction overall.

Still, Year 2 of his tenure will be of utmost importance for the staff. In order to keep the positive trajectory going, Ole Miss needs to do well in SEC play and make the Big Dance for the first time since 2019.

"I was really proud of last year's team," Beard recently said. "The league was really good. We were competitive. We basically missed the tournament by a game or two, whichever way you look at it. Certainly, year two, having some returners with JuJu [Jaylen Murray], Matt [Murrell] and [Jaemyn] Brakefield back, having some young freshmen in the program in [Eduardo] Klafke and [John] Bol, we just have a better mix right now."

3. Coach Yo and women's basketball continued their climb in national relevance.

Ole Miss was coming off a Sweet 16 appearance prior to last year, and although it fell short of that mark in 2023-24, it still made the NCAA Tournament for the third straight season. Prior to the 2022 tournament, the Rebels had not made the Big Dance since 2007, so Yolett McPhee-McCuin has undoubtedly revived this once-proud program in Oxford.

The Lady Rebs concluded non-conference play for the year on Monday in a 93-41 win over Alcorn State, and they will open SEC action on Thursday on the road against Auburn.

4. Baseball had a disappointing campaign that led to the hiring of a new pitching coach.

Joel Mangrum is tasked with leading the Ole Miss pitching staff in the 2025 season after the Rebels missed the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year in 2024. The last two seasons have been very disappointing for head coach Mike Bianco's team after the program claimed its first national championship in 2022.

Time will tell if the Rebels are able to get back on track this spring, but Mangrum's addition should pay some solid dividends for the pitching arsenal. Former Rebel Dylan DeLucia has worked with Mangrum at the professional level, and he sat down with Ole Miss On SI over the summer to discuss what Mangrum brings to the table.

"He can break it down and tell you exactly what you need to do," DeLucia said. "When you look at SEC and pro ball, I think they're honestly the same. SEC is the top-of-the-top. I think Joel going to [Ole Miss] will only benefit because he's getting them at such a younger age."