Tre Harris Sees Strong Potential in Younger Ole Miss Wide Receivers This Season

The Ole Miss Rebels are dealing with some injury issues at wide receiver this week, but there are younger names who are ready to step into those roles, if necessary.

Nov 4, 2023; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi Rebels wide receiver Tre Harris (9) catches the ball against Texas A&M Aggies defensive back Sam McCall (16) during the first half at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports / Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports

As noted by head coach Lane Kiffin on Monday, the No. 6 Ole Miss Rebels are dealing with some injury issues in their wide receiver room as they prepare to open the season on Saturday. Even with some big names potentially sidelined, however, wide receiver Tre Harris has faith in the younger talent of the room.

Harris was made available to the media on Tuesday, and in light of the limited availability of fellow wideouts Jordan Watkins and Juice Wells in camp, he was asked about the production from two younger names in the position group: Cayden Lee and Ayden Williams.

"They stepped up, not just throughout this month, but really throughout the entire year," Harris said. "They really took big leaps off the field, coming in and getting as much film work as possible. That's kind of how they leveled the playing field, I guess you could say.

"Really excited for them, really excited to see what they do for the first game. Don't be surprised if those names are popping up a lot, to be honest with you."

The Ole Miss offense has some new pieces at its disposal this season, including Harris' teammate in Juice Wells. Harris himself is a former transfer to the Rebels from Louisiana Tech, so he knows what it takes to adapt to a new home. He thinks that the roster is in good standing, in that category.

"We've been meshing really well," Harris said. "Still got some small things to clean up, but we're still keeping the main thing the main thing: getting 1 percent better every single day. Come Saturday, y'all are going to see it."

Harris had a monster season opener a year ago with the Rebels, catching six passes for 133 yards and a school-record four touchdowns in a 73-7 win over FCS Mercer. That was his first action in an Ole Miss uniform, and even though he has a good chance to lead the Rebels in receiving again this season, that performance may be tough to top on Saturday.

"Hopefully I can one-up it," Harris said with a laugh, "but we're really just trying to go out there and get a win for the first game, get one under our belt and continue on throughout the season."

Ole Miss is set to kick off against FCS Furman at 6 p.m. CT at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on Saturday. The game will be televised on SEC Network+.