How good will the Ole Miss Rebels duo of Jaxson Dart and Tre Harris be in 2024?

How good can Jaxson Dart and Tre Harris be for Ole Miss?

No, really, have you thought about the potential? What is the benefit of Year 2 in Lane Kiffin’s offense plus a national audience tuning in every Saturday?

Is a spot in the College Football Playoffs enough?

How about competing for the national title?

And what about individually? Is Dart really a Heisman favorite?

And Harris? Does the All-American visor break through the glass?

It’s all possible. And not living up to expectations while the hype reaches new heights is also possible.

Dart and the always-open Harris burned up the field in their first year together, after the latter transferred from Louisiana Tech. The duo threw 54 times for 985 yards and eight touchdowns, helping the Rebels finish with a program-record 11 wins, capped by a Peach Bowl victory over Penn State.

Harris, who led the Rebels in both receiving yards and touchdowns, might have earned All-American honors and crossed the 1K mark had he not suffered a knee injury that sidelined him for nearly three games starting in Week 2.

And imagine if Harris was fully active against Alabama? The Crimson Tide were sluggish amid a scare in Tampa against South Florida. Jalen Milroe was benched after his performance against Texas and needed a spark to keep the starting job.

Do you think if Dart had Harris at 100 percent like Milroe had Jermaine Burton, would the score have been different? Sure, Alabama might have won, but would it have been at 14 percent?

Maybe by three points.

Maybe it’s Ole Miss who can secure a ticket to Atlanta with an 11-1 score?

Big games define big players. In Ole Miss’s three biggest wins — LSU, Texas A&M and Penn State — Harris stepped up to handle more than half of his receiving yards (500) and a quarter of his touchdowns (2).

Teams know what Harris can do. They also know that Dart, who has completed a career-high 65.1 percent of his throws and a career-low five interceptions, is improving incrementally. It’s Year 3 in the same system, and the former USC phenom has memorized the playbook in his sleep.

Harris won’t be the only one providing scoring drives for the Rebels. Ole Miss returns No. 3 receiver Jordan Watkins and likely preseason All-SEC tight end Caden Prieskorn. If that’s not enough, South Carolina’s Antwane “Juice” Wells should replace — or add to — the production Dayton Wade lost, plus add top JUCO target Deion Smith.

That doesn’t mean Harris won’t be open. When healthy, Wells has proven to be a competent No. 1 target at both James Madison and South Carolina. Watkins also commands respect after leading Ole Miss in receptions and targets in 2023.

Dart will have to distribute to the right receivers. He will have to target the right name to keep the sticks moving and the offense moving. It has been a big part of his offseason goals as he worked with Harris and others in Oxford.

Harris made his presence felt with a four-touchdown day in the season opener against Mercer. He and Dart are hoping to have multiple four-score, seven-point outings en route to a postseason spot on the ‘Last Dance’ tour.

Ole Miss kicks off the upcoming 2024 season at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium against Furman on Saturday, August 31.