Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

Ole Miss Beats Out Nebraska & Florida for 4-Star Recruit

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Levi Dombro | Last updated Jun 26, 2025 5:45 PM ET

The Ole Miss football team is going to look a bit different during the 2025 college football season. Head coach Lane Kiffin will be mitigating the loss of eight NFL draft picks and several more who signed as undrafted free agents or transferred elsewhere.

Kiffin has developed a reputation as a strong recruiter of transfers, as evidenced by none of the Rebels' 11 NFL combine invites having started their college careers at Ole Miss.

While Ole Miss put together another strong transfer portal class this offseason, they have already begun hitting the high school recruiting trail hard for players in the class of 2026 and 2027.

Ole Miss had eight hard commits for the class of 2026 heading into this week. Kiffin landed another four-star prospect on Thursday when interior offensive lineman Ryan Merit announced his commitment.

Merit is a four-star recruit, and he is the ninth player in the class to commit to Kiffin and the Rebels. He chose Ole Miss over other notable programs like Nebraska, Florida and Miami.

At 6-foot-4 and 305 pounds, the Miami, Florida native will have a chance to make an immediate impact when he gets on campus. He is the Rebels' only interior offensive lineman commit in the class, and the team is currently recuperating from massive losses at the position this offseason.

Among the other commits for the class of 2026 are four-star running back Damarius Yates and four-star linebacker Izayia Williams.

Ole Miss opens their season on August 30 against Georgia State. Kickoff is set for 7:45 p.m. ET at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Mississippi.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: