2021-2022 CFB SEC West preview: Key players, schedule, predictions 

Ole Miss Rebels: SEC West

Mississippi v LSU

The first year of Lane Kiffin's tenure with the Rebels saw the team head in an interesting direction, even though the record was .500 and Ole Miss finished fifth in the SEC West. There's a lot to like in this team for the upcoming season.

Here's a look at the Ole Miss Rebels' strengths and weaknesses heading into the 2021-2022 season.

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2021-2022 SEC West Conference preview: Ole Miss Rebels

Ole Miss' strengths: The offense could be really good with the amount of talent available. Depending on which game you watched last season, you might have a good or a bad impression of Matt Corral, the Rebels quarterback. Corral will have an interesting receiving group with Jonathan Mingo, Braylon Sanders and Dontario Drummond.

For the first time, #OleMiss’ John Rhys Plumlee discusses football moving ahead with head coach Lane Kiffin. "Whatever will help the team win is what we're going to do. I prayed on it. It's going to be a lot of fun."via @Rebels247 | #OleMisshttps://t.co/qeWXOHU5O3

— Brad Logan (@BradLoganCOTE) July 15, 2021

Ole Miss' weaknesses: The defense last year was truly awful. Every single team scored at least 20 points against the Rebels in 2020 and there's not much incoming talent to boost the group. Some development may be expected, of course, but few expect the unit to become a force.

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Ole Miss key player: Offense

QB Matt Corral: Basically the whole offense goes through Corral. He threw 14 interceptions last year, but 11 of them were against Arkansas (six INTs, L 21-353) and LSU (five INTs, L 48-53).

He got way better last season as the year went on, but he can't keep having those games where he goes berserk and forces a lot of passes. The most important thing for Ole Miss is: can Corral become better mentally?

Matt Corral: 8 completions of 40+ yards in 2020Most in the SEC ☄️☄️☄️ pic.twitter.com/b8MmiL3ppU

— PFF College (@PFF_College) July 13, 2021

Ole Miss key player: Defense

DE Sam Williams: Williams gets an extra year as the NCAA has granted one more year of eligibility because of the pandemic during the 2020 season. He amassed 10 sacks in two years with the Rebels and, in a defense that was way below-average last year, he's one of the rare bright spots.

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2021-2022 Ole Miss Rebels schedule:

Week 1: Monday, September 6 vs. Louisville Cardinals

Week 2: Saturday, September 11 vs. Austin Peay Governors

Week 3: Saturday, September 18 vs. Tulane Green Wave

Week 4: Bye week

Week 5: Saturday, October 2 at Alabama Crimson Tide

Week 6: Saturday, October 9 vs. Arkansas Razorbacks

Week 7: Saturday, October 16 at Tennessee Volunteers

Week 8: Saturday, October 23 vs. LSU Tigers

Week 9: Saturday, October 30 at Auburn Tigers

Week 10: Saturday, November 6 vs. Liberty Flames

Week 11: Saturday, November 13 vs. Texas A&M Aggies

Week 12: Saturday, November 20 vs. Vanderbilt Commodores

Week 13: Thursday, November 25 at Mississippi State Bulldogs

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Mississippi v Arkansas

2021-2022 Ole Miss Rebels prediction (7-5 overall, 3-5 SEC)

As much as there's belief that the Rebels will progress this season with Corral diminishing his mistakes and another year with Kiffin, it's still difficult to trust Ole Miss' defense. They are up for a tough time in the SEC West against so many good offenses, but they'll still be in contention for a bowl game.