The Ole Miss Rebels are hoping to build off last year’s nine-win campaign when SEC action resumes this fall, but that task is easier said than done. The Rebels may boast one of the most talented rosters top to bottom in the conference, and its famed 2013 recruiting class is entering its third year on campus, raising the expectations for that star-studded collection of players.

Unfortunately, Ole Miss plays in a loaded SEC West division that may be more overrun with ranked teams than any other division in history. And what’s even more unfortunate for Ole Miss is its lack of an established quarterback to lead this talented team come the fall.

The Rebels have three signal callers on campus who spent the spring battling for the starting job and who will continue to battle when training camp arrives in August. But while depth remains a concern at the game’s most important position, it’s become a strength throughout the rest of the Ole Miss lineup.

Here’s our prediction for how the Rebels’ depth chart looks coming out of spring ball:

OFFENSE

QB1: Chad Kelly
QB2: Ryan Buchanan/Devante Kincade

Freeze took a risk in bringing in Kelly, a quarterback with a wealth of talent but also a wealth of issues away from the field. He owned that risk, and Kelly has stayed inside the lines since arriving in Oxford. Although Freeze said Buchanan was leading the competition entering the spring game, the poor performances by all three quarterbacks in that game may have moved Kelly back in front.

RB1: Jaylen Walton
RB2: Jordan Wilkins

Walton is the team’s returning starter from last year, and while his numbers won’t dazzle anyone Walton does fill a vital role on the offense. He’s a deadly pass-catcher out of the backfield, and he can line up out wide as well. He can run between the tackles and on the perimeter, and he’ll stick his nose in and block when called upon. Wilkins is a more traditional tailback who is less feast-or-famine than Walton, but who also lacks Walton’s explosive uside.

X WR1: Laquon Treadwell
X WR2: Damore’ea Stringfellow

Z WR1: Cody Core
Z WR2: Damarkus Lodge/Van Jefferson

Y WR1: Derrick Jones
Y WR2: Quincy Adeboyejo

TE1: Evan Engram
TE2: Taz Zettergren

The Rebels are supremely deep at the wide receiver position, a blessing for whoever assumes the quarterback duties this fall. Treadwell is a possible first-round pick in next year’s NFL draft, and he led the team in receptions in each of his first two seasons in Oxford. Core asserted himself as a dangerous deep threat last year, Jones captivated Freeze and the other coaches this spring, and Stringfellow is a touted transfer from Washington who sat out last year but has the size, length and athleticism to dominate on the perimeter. Lodge and Jefferson are both four-star signees from this year’s recruiting class, and former four-star talent Markell Pack isn’t even listed among the seven wideouts above. Factor in Evan Engram, a former wideout and the most athletic receiving tight end in the SEC, and you’ve got plenty of weapons for Ole Miss to move the ball through the air.

LT1: Laremy Tunsil
LT2: Christian Morris

LG1: Justin Bell
LG2: Javon Patterson

C1: Ben Still
C2: Robert Conyers

RG1: Rod Taylor
RG2: Aaron Morris

RT1: Fahn Cooper
RT2: Robert Conyers

The Rebels return all five of their starters along the offensive line from last year, but injuries kept many of the names listed above off the field for the entirety of the spring, including Tunsil, Aaron Morris and Conyers. Patterson is a four-star signee from this year’s recruiting class who will arrive in August and could add depth immediately alongside Conyers and Morris, and if the starters can regain their rapport early in the year, this group could become a position of strength once again.

DEFENSE

DE1: Marquis Haynes
DE2: Jack Youngblood

DT1: Robert Nkemdiche
DT2: D.J. Jones

DT1: Issac Gross
DT2: Woodrow Hamilton

DE1: Fadol Brown
DE2: Channing Ward

Nkemdiche, the former top overall recruit in the nation, enters his third year on the Landsharks defense, and it’s expected he’ll finally take over as one of the top defensive linemen in the nation as he aims to work his way into the top 5 of next year’s draft. Beside him stands Issac Gross, one of the SEC’s top 5 players at the position who’s been overshadowed by Nkemdiche the last two years. Marquis Haynes’ 7.5 sacks as a freshman last year would’ve been impressive in any other year, but Derek Barnett and Myles Garrett ended up outshining Haynes a bit. With C.J. Johnson moving to middle linebacker the defensive end spots get a bit thinner, with inexperienced players like Youngblood and Ward just one snap away from a starting job. Still, the impact made by those two monstrous tackles should carry the line throughout the year.

OLB1: Denzel Nkemdiche
OLB2: Terry Caldwell

MIKE1: C.J. Johnson
MIKE2: Christian Russell

Johnson impressed coaches in his move to inside linebacker this spring, and it’s likely he’ll start there in Week 1 alongside outside ‘backer Denzel Nkemdiche. Caldwell, a three-star junior college transfer, could develop into a nice complementary piece, and Russell will add more experienced depth at inside linebacker if Johnson begins to struggle at his new position.

CB1: Tee Shepard
CB2: Kendarius Webster

CB1: Tony Bridges
CB2: Kailo Moore

HUSKY1: Tony Conner
HUSKY2: A.J. Moore

ROVER1: Mike Hilton
ROVER2: C.J. Hampton

FS1: Trae Elston
FS2: C.J. Moore

Shepard and Bridges are each former No. 1-rated junior college cornerbacks slated to make their SEC debuts this fall. Shepard was once headed to Notre Dame, and both have the talent to dominate in the SEC so long as they get comfortable with the speed of the game early in the year. The emergence of those two corners caused Chucky Mullins Courage Award winner Mike Hilton to move to the Rover position, a more versatile safety position, where he’ll play alongside Elston, one of the conference’s best free safeties. Conner is one of the hardest-hitting safeties in the FBS, and as the Husky he’ll continue to star as a playmaker who may also leave early for the NFL next offseason.

K: Gary Wunderlich
P: Will Gleeson

KR: Markell Pack
PR: Markell Pack

Wunderlich, Gleeson and Pack all filled these roles last year. Gleeson averaged nearly 43 yards per punt in his first season of organized football at any level, and Wunderlich made 6 of 8 field goals while sharing the job with since-graduated Andrew Fletcher. Pack may be replaced as the team’s return man if he takes on a bigger role at receiver, but his explosiveness and experience in the return game should serve him well this season.