Later spring practice may provide better picture for Plumlee

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Ole Miss quarterback John Rhys Plumlee (Photo: John Bowen, 247Sports)

Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin and offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby have a quarterback order to decipher this spring.

With a position room six deep and two quarterbacks returning with starting experience, it will be one of the most intriguing storylines of the spring for Ole Miss football. The Rebels will go through spring drills a little later than usual this year with an expected start date of March 17.

Inside that quarterbacks room are a pair of sophomores in Matt Corral and John Rhys Plumlee, the leading contenders to become the Rebels' starting signal caller. Joining them are redshirt freshmen Grant Tisdale and Kinkead Dent and true freshman Kade Renfro, who joined the program as a mid-year signee in January. Redshirt freshman Sellers Shy, a walk-on, also has a chair at the table.

The big-armed Corral could possibly get the lion's share of the first-team reps in the spring, as Plumlee, a two-sport standout, plays baseball for Mike Bianco's Rebels. With that being the case, Kiffin knows a proper evaluation of the position may be difficult this spring.

"I think with baseball, that's going to be tough to evaluate that completely with John (Rhys Plumlee) playing baseball," Kiffin said, adding that he is fully supportive of Plumlee's endeavors at Swayze Field.

"We want that to be his first priority, because if you're going to be in something, I just think you go with it, and whatever time he has left he'll come to us," Kiffin said.

The fact the Rebels aren't beginning spring practices until mid March should give Plumlee, an outfielder, a little more time to weigh how he will split his time between baseball and football and which may best demand his attention.

"I talked about it with baseball...let's see how it goes. They're (Plumlee and running back Jerrion Ealy) all in right now on baseball, and then let' see. If they're having a significant role, they'll stay in there. If they're not, then they'll probably come back and do more football," said Kiffin.

As for Plumlee, “They just said that they’re going to get it handled, that it’s doable (and) that me and Ealy are going to be able to do it. Just to go out there and do our thing — be athletes and be students. Got to stay ahead, so that’s what we’ve been trying to do in the classroom...Just stay ahead and try to juggle both, so that’s what we’re doing, "he said in a previous interview with the Spirit.

Meanwhile, Kiffin is doing what he can do to help. He even gave Ealy a lift to a recent baseball practice.

"I found out where the baseball stadium was yesterday, because I was driving the car and Ealy was walking on the side of the road by himself, so I circled around and picked him up. I'm like, Where are you going?' He said the baseball stadium. I kept taking wrong turns. He was like, 'Do you know where the baseball stadium is, Coach?' I told him no idea. It was an amazing stadium. I didn't even know about it. Beautiful looking stadium," Kiffin said.

Corral started the first four games last season. Plumlee started the final eight. Tisdale, who entered the transfer portal in the middle of the season, withdrew after the coaching change.

"Excited to work with a lot of really young players at that position and two players that played a lot last year and made a lot of really good plays at times," said Kiffin.

The annual Grove Bowl spring game is set for the evening of April 18.

SOURCE: Johnson, David. "Later spring practice may provide better picture for Plumlee." OMSpirit - 247Sports.com, 10 February 2020, https://247sports.com/college/ole-miss/Article/Ole-Miss-football-Later-spring-practice-may-provide-better-picture-for-John-Rhys-Plumlee-143629958/