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Three Ole Miss Football Players Named SEC Player of the Week
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Three Ole Miss Football Players Named SEC Player of the Week

When history is made, players are honored.

That’s why three Ole Miss players sit high in conference honors heading into Week 11.

rebels senior quarterback Jaxson Dart and senior wide receiver Jordan Watkins He shared the title of Offensive Player of the Week after defeating Arkansas in a 63-31 victory at Razorback Stadium.

Sophomore linebacker TJ Dottery earned co-Defensive Player of the Week honors. Meanwhile, senior defender Princely Umanmielen received the Defensive Judge of the Week award.

Dart, who surpassed Bo Wallace as Ole Miss’ all-time total offense leader, completed 25 of 31 passes for 515 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions, and also rushed for 47 yards on 10 carries. He also completed three consecutive passes for a touchdown, all of which landed in Watkins’ arms for a total of 18 points.

By the end of the game, Dart either broke or tied Ole Miss’ single-game records for total offense (562), passing yards (515) and passing yards (6), while also helping the Rebels break the single-game team record for passing yards (6). (562) and tied for team points in passing yards (7) and points scored against an SEC opponent (63).

Ole Mis

November 2, 2024; Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA; Ole Miss Rebels quarterback Jaxson Dart (2) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Arkansas Razorbacks in the third quarter at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. Mississippi won 63-31. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images / Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

The Darts’ day of play against Arkansas ranked fourth in SEC history (third-best against SEC defense), while the blitz was sixth-best ever against SEC defense and best since 2021. He is also only one of two quarterbacks in SEC history. He threw for 500 yards and six touchdowns in a game alongside Missouri’s Drew Lock in 2017.

“It’s pretty cool and unique, but all the glory goes to God,” Dart said. “We have great coaches and players, and our (offensive coordinator) coach (Charlie) Weis called it a great game today.”

Replacing the injured Tre Harris as the Darts’ target, Watkins broke the Ole Miss single-game record for receiving yards (254) and receiving touchdowns (5) and became one of only two men in SEC history to have 250 yards receiving. Five-touchdown game against SEC defense with Alabama Heisman Trophy winner DeVonta Smith.

The record was first broken last season by Harris, who scored four goals in the Week 1 opener against FCS Mercer. In receiving yards, Watkins became one of only four Ole Miss receivers to score 225 or more in a game, joining Jonathan Mingo, Elijah Moore and AJ Brown.

“(Watkins) was huge,” Rebels coach Lane Kiffin said. “We moved him left and right throughout the game, moving him around for matchups. I thought those things really worked in our favor.”

Defensively, Dottery started the scoring in the first quarter. He sacked Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green in the end zone, causing a fumble that was recovered by Umanmielen for the first Ole Miss touchdown of the day. He finished the outing with five tackles, 1.5 TFL and a sack.

Dottery is second on the team with 58 total steals through nine games.

The No. 16 Rebels return to Vaught-Hemingway Stadium this Saturday to take on No. 2 Georgia.