In 2015, Ole Miss is having to replace its quarterback of the last three years, a starting wide receiver, two starting linebackers and two All-American defensive backs.

But there’s still enough talent left in Oxford to make the Rebels a threat in the SEC West and build off last season’s 9-4 record.

It’s a junior- and senior-laden group of starters on both sides of the ball for Ole Miss, featuring several former five-star recruits from the team’s regarded 2013 class. Many of those upperclassmen will be playing on Sundays next year with some of them possibly becoming first-round picks in 2016.

Hugh Freeze and Co. will need them to help contend with a gauntlet of a schedule this season.

SDS ranked Ole Miss’ 10 best players:

10. Mike Hilton, S

Making the move from cornerback, Hilton will have more freedom to use his athleticism and ball skills this season as the defense’s Rover safety. Hilton intercepted three passes last season and deflected seven more, but it’s also the fact that he has a nose for the backfield, with 13 tackles for a loss in his collegiate career, that makes him perfect for the safety position. He is one of two seniors in Hugh Freeze’s five-man secondary and will be relied upon heavily in the back end of the defense.

9. Issac Gross, DT

Despite not being the biggest defensive tackle at 6-foot-1, 250 pounds and being somewhat overshadowed in the trenches by future first rounder Robert Nkemdiche, Gross can still plug up the middle as good as any in the SEC at his position. Gross is excellent against the run and in three years has never finished a season with less than 8 tackles for a loss. He’ll even occasionally use his quickness to get after the quarterback for a sack, which he did twice in this year’s Grove Bowl — Ole Miss’ spring game. Gross and Nkemdiche will be a force to be reckoned with this season working next to each other on the defensive line.

8. C.J. Johnson, LB

As the only member of the Rebels defense to earn four letters at Ole Miss, Johnson is living up to being the team player that served as a game captain for every game last season. Johnson is helping the defense address a need and switching his position in his senior season from defensive end (where he was thriving) to middle linebacker. Phil Steele named Johnson to the preseason All-SEC third team and he is also on the preseason watch list for the Butkus Award, which is given to the nation’s top linebacker each year. At 6-foot-2, 225 pounds, the Philadelphia native is a good enough athlete to make a flawless transition.

7. Jaylen Walton, RB

Walton is on the preseason watch list for the Paul Hornung Award, which is given to college football’s most versatile player each season. That’s because he not only starts in the backfield for the Rebels where many of his touches come through the air, but he also returns kicks and does so well. Walton is atop the record books in Oxford with 1,542 career kick return yards entering his senior season and the all-purpose scatback also ranks sixth in school history with 3,354 career all-purpose yards.

6. Marquis Haynes, DE

As a freshman, Haynes led the team in sacks with 7.5 and added an impressive 31 tackles and 3 forced fumbles. Phil Steele named Haynes fourth-team All-SEC and his potential is incredible working beside two standouts that divert a lot of attention like Nkemdiche and Gross. As Ole Miss’ premier pass rusher, expect Haynes stats to only improve as he continues to mature and master his craft.

5. Evan Engram, TE

It’s crazy that one of the nation’s best tight ends is only fifth on this list. Engram is on the Mackey Award preseason watch list and is projected to be a first-team All-American by Phil Steele. Engram led all SEC tight ends last season with 50.9 yards per game and 662 total receiving yards, but could see his stats increase this season. Inexperienced quarterbacks often use their tight end as a safety valve when under pressure. Engram already ranks top four in Ole Miss history in career receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns by a tight end.

4. Tony Conner, CB

He’ll be playing as the nickelback, but Conner is talented enough to play any position in the secondary and projects as an NFL safety. Conner is on preseason watch lists for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and Jim Thorpe Award while being named to the preseason second-team All-SEC team by Phil Steele. Sporting News also ranked him as the No. 7 defensive back in the country. Conner is known for being a tough, physical defensive back and, in fact, was called the second-most physical player in college football by NFL.com.

3. Laquon Treadwell, WR

Treadwell is projected to be one of the first wide receivers taken in the 2016 NFL Draft and for good reason. In just 22 games so far with the Rebels, the former five-star recruit already has 120 receptions for 1,240 yards and 10 touchdowns. Last season, Treadwell was averaging more than 13 yards per catch before a gruesome leg injury against Auburn in November ended his season early. But reports out of Oxford as fall camp gets underway are that Treadwell is 100 percent healthy and looking like an absolute beast. He looks to prove that he is hands-down the best receiver in the SEC this year, but will have to do so with a new quarterback.

2. Laremy Tunsil, OT

Tunsil probably would have (and some would say should have) been first on this list if it weren’t for a serious injury that he suffered in the Rebels’ Peach Bowl loss to TCU. Tunsil fractured his fibula in that final game of the season and was out all spring but is expected to be ready for fall camp. Had he been eligible to enter, that injury might not have even stopped Tunsil from being a top-five pick in this year’s draft because of how impressive he’s been the last two seasons as the Rebels starting left tackle, only allowing two sacks total. Tunsil is still a projected top-five pick in 2016 and is on the preseason watch lists for the Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award to go along with being a preseason All-American.

1. Robert Nkemdiche, DT

Last but certainly not least, the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2013 class also finds himself at the top of this list. Like Tunsil, Nkemdiche likely will become a top-five draft pick in 2016 and is already a two-time All-American despite not having numbers that jump off the page at you. In two seasons, Nkemdiche only has 2 sacks and 12 tackles for a loss, but it’s what he does that isn’t shown on the stat sheet that makes him such a valuable asset. An athletic 6-foot-4, 296 pounds, opposing teams plan around Nkemdiche. Often their solution is to double-team him to offset his presence. But all that attention to Nkemdche opens up everything else for what is sure to be one of the nation’s top defenses. Expect Nkemdiche’s stats to spike this year as he tries to up his stock in what is likely his last season before going to the NFL.