It is possible the preseason polls won’t be too kind to Ole Miss based on the amount of stars the program is losing, but keeping the Rebels out of the Top 15 would show negligence.

Chad Kelly is back and will make up for deficiencies Ole Miss will have on offense. Plus, with Dak Prescott and Brandon Allen gone, Kelly arguably will be the best quarterback in the SEC.

Just as Mississippi State did heading into Prescott’s senior season in 2015, Ole Miss lost most of its stars surrounding its quarterback.

DEPARTED OLE MISS OFFENSIVE STARTERS

  • LT Laremy Tunsil
  • WR Laquon Treadwell
  • RB Jaylen Walton
  • RT Fahn Cooper
  • LG Justin Bell
  • C Ben Still
  • WR Cody Core

Four of the five starting offensive linemen need to be replaced, including All-American Laremy Tunsil.

That is obviously not a recipe for success in 2016, but at least Ole Miss has top recruits arriving to help replace those departed starters. Five-star OT Gregory Little is expected to start immediately at left tackle. Four-star OT Bryce Mathews will also likely compete to play opposite Little at right tackle.

Additionally, the Rebels have four other three-star offensive linemen arriving in 2016. Although there will certainly be a learning curve with these freshmen, it will help having a veteran quarterback under center.

Particularly one that can scramble when the blocking breaks down. Kelly ran for 509 yards and 10 TDs in 2015. He might have to run for his life early in the season, which he is fully capable of doing.

Unfortunately, up front isn’t the only question mark on the offense. Coach Hugh Freeze is losing three playmakers in Treadwell, Core and Walton. Treadwell will be particularly difficult to replace. He set career-highs with 82 catches, 1,153 yards and 11 TDs in 2015 and is expected to be a top 10 selection in the NFL draft.

Ole Miss is going to rely upon recruiting to replace Treadwell and Core. It is hard to find a program who recruited better at the wide receiver position than Ole Miss in the 2016 class.

The Rebels landed three four-star wideouts — A.J. Brown, DeKaylin Metcalf and Tre Nixon. Those three will be added to junior Quincy Adeboyejo and redshirt sophomore Damore’ea Stringfellow, among other talented receivers already on the roster. In 2015, Adeboyejo had 604 yards and 7 TDs while Stringfellow posted 503 yards with 5 TDs.

That’s not to mention Evan Engram, an All-American candidate at tight end.

Of course it is going to be difficult to replace Treadwell, but these young receivers are extremely talented. A veteran quarterback who can sling the ball anywhere might be all they need to unleash their potential.

At running back, Ole Miss will have a little more experience. Sophomore Jordan Wilkins and redshirt junior Akeem Judd will make up for the loss of Walton.

There are definitely a lot of reasons to be skeptical about the Rebels heading into 2016. In addition to replacing seven offensive starters, Freeze must also find seven new starters on the defensive side of the ball.

But fans see time and time again that behind a great, veteran quarterback, above average teams can be great. Kelly alone will likely be enough for Ole Miss to compete for the SEC West title in 2016, and Kelly is also the reason the Rebels should find themselves in the Top 15 in the preseason rankings.