Why What ESPN Just Said Changed Everything For Ole Miss

ESPN just put Ole Miss in the same tier as Georgia and Ohio State. Not near them. Not "in the conversation with" them. In it.   IN THIS EPISODE: 👑 The tier. Jordan Reid didn't just rank teams — he stacked them into tiers by how much 2027 draft talent is on each roster. Twelve teams made it, and Ole Miss is in the same tier as the two programs that have simply owned the last decade of this sport. Why that's different from a poll: a coaches poll is people voting on what they think will happen; a draft board is professional scouts telling you what is physically in the building. And talent accumulation is the only thing that repeats — records don't, schedules don't, health doesn't. 🧠 The Jimmies and the Joes. Here's why this list matters this specific year. New offensive coordinator. A head coach with exactly three games at the Division I level. So the talent has to carry it — and we've been told for thirty years that the Jimmies and the Joes matter more than the X's and O's. This is the test case. Perkins, Keaton Thomas, Echoles, Lacy, Chambliss, Aguero, Joseph. And the part that makes it work: the best players are also the best dudes on the team. 📊 Draftable is the bar. Nine Rebels named, five in the back seven. Everybody's going to see "Day 3" and shrug — that's exactly backwards. How many Ole Miss defensive backs had a draft grade a year ago? None. Not one. Now there are four. Roughly 250 players get drafted a year out of about 100,000 playing college football. ESPN didn't argue with me; ESPN quantified me. 🏟️ Two out of sixteen. Progressive is coming to the field at Vaught-Hemingway. More than a dozen schools nationally — and exactly two in the SEC. Georgia and Ole Miss. What that says about reach, television inventory, and Keith Carter's national-brand build. Plus the honest part: it's reported, not announced.   🚨 THE OLE MISS HUB GOES LIVE AROUND AUGUST 24 — one place for everything Locked On Ole Miss. ⭐ THE EVERYDAY CLUB — ad-free episodes, members-only Discord, 7-day free trial: https://lockedonolemiss.supercast.com 💬 JOIN THE FREE LOCKED ON OLE MISS DISCORD: https://discord.gg/KF3dtcQJhC Locked On Ole Miss is your daily Ole Miss Rebels podcast, part of the Locked On Podcast Network. New episodes every single day. Hotty Toddy. 🦈 #HottyToddy #OleMiss #OleMissFootball   Ole Miss, Ole Miss Rebels, Ole Miss Football, 2027 NFL Draft, Georgia Bulldogs, Ohio State Buckeyes, SEC Football, NFL Draft Prospects, Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, Progressive sponsorship, Steven Willis, Santaren Perkins, Keaton Thomas, Will Echols, Kejuan Lacy, Trinidad Chambliss, Janelle Aguero, Edwin Joseph, Antonio Kite, Shareef Denson, Jay Crawford, college football news, Ole Miss 2024   Episode Timestamps 00:00 Ole Miss ranked with top teams 03:21 Evaluating Ole Miss football program 06:57 Discussing Ole Miss talent potential 12:40 Ole Miss Hub launch update 16:27 Ole Miss defensive improvements 17:26 Improvement in Ole Miss defense 22:04 New revenue in college sports 25:01 Corporate logos and team analysis   JOIN THE EVERYDAYERS CLUB https://lockedonolemiss.supercast.com/   Everydayer Club   If you never miss an episode, it’s time to make it official. Join the Locked On Everydayer Club and get ad-free audio, access to our members-only Discord, and more — all built for our most loyal fans. Click here to learn more and join your team’s community: https://lockedonpodcasts.com/everydayerclub     Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!   Poncho Outdoors Go to https://ponchooutdoors.com/LOCKEDON  and enter your email to get $10 off and free shipping on your first order Odoo Great organizations win because operations matter. And that’s why you should get Odoo. Try for free today at https://Odoo.com/lockedon.  Indeed Listeners of this show get a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to help give your job the premium placement it deserves at http://Indeed.com/podcast   FanDuel Today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. From the opening whistle to the final kick, Let There Be Goals on FanDuel. Visit https://FANDUEL.COM to get started now.    FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.