Ole Miss has five of ESPN's Top 100 players in the transfer portal

Ole Miss once again had one of the top transfer portal classes in this new one-time transfer window earlier this month as Pete Golding continues to bring top talent to Oxford.

The loss of Lane Kiffin was not as much of a sting as maybe he, or others outside of The Manning Center, expected it to be with the Rebels re-loading the cupboard. In some positions it was even an improvement with the new talent coming in to replace what head off to the proverbial greener grass.

Defense was a major focus by Golding in the early days of his first transfer class as head coach at Ole Miss. While navigating Sugar Bowl and Fiesta Bowl prep in the College Football Playoff Golding was also hard at work replenishing his defense for 2026.

The talent brought in was noticed by ESPN as two of the five new Rebels that made it on the outlet’s list of the Top 100 players in the transfer portal were on defense.

Safety Edwin Joseph (No. 57) and cornerback Jay Crawford (No. 93) were considered two of top gets of the Ole Miss transfer haul.

The secondary already looks to be in better shape with Joseph and Crawford coming into the fold from Florida State and Auburn, respectively, along with a returning Antonio Kite and Jaylon Braxton.

“Elite NFL corner,” former Ole Miss and Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze told the Ole Miss Spirit. “(Crawford) started for us as a freshman and as sophomore. Really not many balls went his way. He was an elite corner for us that we felt could match up size and strength with speed against the elite receivers in this league. That’s a huge get. I don’t know how long he’ll be there and all of that, but it would be stunning to me if he did not make an immediate impact. He’s just that talented.”

Related: Two Starters, One Project: What Ole Miss got from Florida in the portal

The Ole Miss offense got a nod with its transfer additions, too.

Offensive lineman Carius Curne was the highest ranked newcomer, landing at No. 55 on ESPN’s list. The LSU transfer was a valuable addition but that is compounded even more with the departure of PJ Wilkins, Ethan Fields, Devin Harper and Jude Foster. Not all of those were going to be key contributors to start 2026 but the depth took a major blow.

In fact Golding could stand to land a few more offensive tackles to help make that room feel better, depth-wise.

The passing game got a boost with key additions to the wide receiver room and quarterback room. Syracuse transfer Darrell Gill (No. 81) and Auburn’s Deuce Knight (94) were also on ESPN’s list.

Gill is one of four new wide receivers to come to Oxford, including fellow Syracuse teammate Johntay Cook II. The pair are going to be tasked with replacing the production of De’Zhaun Stribling, Harrison Wallace III and Cayden Lee. The first two are heading to the NFL while Lee is following Austin Simmons to Missouri.

Speaking of Simmons, the addition of Knight was paramount to the Rebels quarterback room. With Trinidad Chambliss’ eligibility still murky, landing Knight from Auburn make him the potential de-facto starter with a returning Walker Howard and AJ Maddox in tow.

This scenario presuming Chambliss does not come back, though a February court date will clear things up if the NCAA appeal hearing earlier this month did not go his way, which feels likely.