OXFORD ― Lane Kiffin's crystal ball is cloudy.

Every year, the Ole Miss football coach has a few key position battles to monitor during preseason practice. Still, Kiffin said he's usually had an idea for the likely outcomes of those competitions.

As the Rebels opened preseason practice ahead of the 2024 season on Wednesday, Kiffin explained that he can't call on that same intuition.

"There are some (positions), including offensive line, that I don't know if I could tell you and be right if I had to predict who was going to start," Kiffin said.

It's a function of the Rebels' aggressive approach to the offseason, landing impact transfers even at positions with returning talent.

The Rebels returned three offensive line starters in Micah Pettus, Jeremy James and Caleb Warren, while also adding four veterans from the transfer portal.

The offensive line grouping Ole Miss showed in the portion of practice open to the media featured Southern Miss transfer Gerquan Scott at center. Around him were four returners: James, Warren, Pettus and Jayden Williams. Washington transfer Nate Kalepo did not dress during the open session.

Maintaining a positive culture despite the transfer turnover has been a major focus for Kiffin of late. According to James, that approach has been effective on the offensive line, where the competition is the most fierce.

"Probably as close as we've ever been," James said. "Everyone's getting along well. It's just making competition, which is good for all of us, pushing each other. The new guys fit in well, we all love them already."

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There are several other spots where Rebels who produced well last season will have to fight for snaps over the next few weeks, including defensive line and secondary.

So is running back, where Ole Miss returns Ulysses Bentley IV, who averaged 5.7 yards per carry last season while backing up Quinshon Judkins. Rashad Amos and Henry Parrish Jr. transferred in to join Bentley in the running back room following productive 2023 seasons elsewhere.

Kiffin said he hasn't decided how to structure his backfield, noting he's open to giving one back the bulk of the carries should a standout emerge from the group. If that doesn't happen, he said he could also split carries up between Bentley, Amos and Parrish.

Bentley said he expected Kiffin to make further additions when he decided to come back to Ole Miss last winter.

"Kiffn, you know he always brings in a lot of transfers," Bentley said.

After Wednesday, the Rebels have 24 more practices to decide how they all fit.

"I think it's a lot of fun," Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart said. "There's a lot of intensity out there. And Coach Kiff is right. You look at the whole offensive line, the whole defensive line, the different rotations in the back end that we could be doing ‒ there's a lot of different things from a rotation standpoint that can work.

"It just creates an atmosphere of competition. There's nothing better than that."

David Eckert covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at deckert@gannett.com or reach him on Twitter @davideckert98.

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This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Lane Kiffin: Ole Miss football depth chart mystery to Rebels coach