The 6-2, 290-pounder started 25 games during his career at Memphis, including all 12 games during the 2023 season. He only allowed one sack and seven quarterback hurries the entire year.
Carter can play both guard and center. He played center for the Tigers until last season when he moved to right guard. He enters the portal with one year of eligibility remaining.
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UCF fits the mold of a Big 12 team, according to Chris Beard
On Sunday, the Ole Miss men’s basketball team will once again put its unbeaten record on the line on the road at UCF.
“It starts with Coach (Johnny Dawkins),” Beard said of UCF. “He’s been doing this for a long time and built programs. It doesn’t take long to see that they’re well coached. In terms of personnel, it’s a Big 12 team with size, great guard play and their scoring comes in a variety of ways. To me, having been in the Big 12, I know what that means. Like the SEC, it’s one of the best leagues in the country… It’s an opportunity week.”
With a current NET rating of 68, the Knights enter Sunday’s matchup with a 6-2 record with losses to then No. 13 Miami and Stetson to close out the month of November. Like Ole Miss, UCF can make things hard defensively. The Knights force almost 17 turnovers per contest and have blocked almost six shots and have held their first eight opponents to under 40 percent from the floor on average. Offensively, UCF has scored at least 72 points in all eight games, scoring just shy of 80 per hame and shooting 44% from the floor. A +6 margin on the glass has helped their cause as well. Thus far, they’ve been paced by some elite guard play between Darius Johnson and Jaylin Sellers. The latter has led the Big 12 in scoring since Nov. 27, currently averaging 20.6 points per game (49% FG) and five boards on average as well.
Ole Miss is off to an 8-0 start for just the fourth time in program history, the best start overall since the 2007-08 season that started 13-0. After South Carolina fell on the road at Clemson, the Rebels are the SEC’s only remaining unbeaten team. After Allen Flanigan carried a massive offensive load through the first six games of the season, Jaylen Murray and Matthew Murrell have both thrived in the backcourt against both Memphis and most recently Mount St. Mary’s, combining for at least 40 points in both games.
This matchup is the backend of a home-and-home series, with UCF taking last year’s matchup 72-61 in Oxford on the back of a whopping 21-0 run to start the game.
Tipoff for Ole Miss’ UCF matchup on Sunday is set for 3 p.m. CT and can be seen on BIG12N/ESPN+ or listened to on the Ole Miss Radio Network. Inside the Rebels will be available provide coverage, notes, facts, observations and more.
Cleveland Browns Week 14 Rooting Guide
Looking at this week 14 NFL games to see what the optimal outcomes are for the Cleveland Browns.
To give you an idea of who is favored in each matchup I will add the current betting line at the time of writing.
This is an analytical look at the playoff race and what happens with each win and loss per SumerSports. They have loads of advanced analytics tools for teams and players.
Betting Line – Saints 5.5 point favorites
I am fully committed to not seeing an AFC team pick in the top two, the top three would be nice so whichever NFC teams sucks the most, cheer against them.
Go Saints!
Betting Line – Lions 3.0 point favorites
Firstly this is crazy that it is only a three point spread, one of the best teams in the NFC verses a car crash in Chicago. We want a Lions win here to destroy the moral in Chicago dressing room and have their minds on a high draft pick come the Cleveland Browns game in a few weeks. Currently they are only two wins off of the Packers.
Go Lions!
Betting Line – Texans 6.5 point favorites
If you are reading this article and throw a ball 40 yards have you considered joining the Jets and playing quarterback because even their own players don’t want to do it. An upset would be massive for the Cleveland Browns here as it helps separate the teams in the wildcard race.
Go Jets!
Betting Line – Colts 1.0 point favorites
The Colts are a 7 win team against a Bengals 6 wins so for me it is an easy choice or rooting for the team with the least wins. Then if the Browns win they are one win ahead of both teams. While some people might fear the Bengals being motivated going into the end of the season that doesn’t bother me but Chiefs should end their season week 17 before we see them.
Go Bengals!
Betting Line – Ravens 7.0 point favorites
Being two wins behind in the division is a tough mountain to climb in the final five games but if this NFL season has taught us anything, never say never. They have Dolphins and 49ers remaining on their schedule too so if they lose this they could easily be limited to 10 wins on the season. A Rams upset is something I don’t see coming but if it does then everything is on the table.
Go Rams!
Betting Line – Falcons 2.5 point favorites
Mike Evans would look great in a Cleveland Browns uniform alongside Amari Cooper, sorry got distracted. These two teams suck so back to day dreaming about him being a big offseason splash…
Who cares!
Betting Line – Vikings 3.0 point favorites
If Josh Dobbs winning doesn’t impact the Cleveland Browns negatively then we root for Josh Dobbs. In this case I don’t want to see the Raiders joining the top ten of the draft so hopefully they can sneak a win.
Go Raiders!
Betting Line – 49ers 10.5 point favorites
We want carnage in the NFC playoffs and hopefully a weaker team gets through if the Cleveland Browns can luck it into a Super Bowl this year so give us the Seahawks here.
Go, Seahawks!
Betting Line – Chiefs 2.5 point favorites
This is a weird game to decide which way we want it to go. If you are glass half full mentality then root for a Chiefs lose so that the race for the number one seed blows wide open potentially. If you are more of a realist and glass half empty then you don’t want to see the Bills sneak into the AFC playoff race via the backdoor. For me I am playing it safe, if we beat the Rams I would be eyeing the number one seed but give me the playoffs and then we can work from there.
Go Chiefs!
Betting Line – Chargers 3.0 point favorites
The Chargers for me might be one of the best head coaching jobs this offseason if they were an NFC team rather than being in the AFC. A win here moves them up the draft but is less of a priority than other teams as they have the quarterback position locked down. Limiting the Broncos in the playoff race would be a big benefit for the Cleveland Browns as the wildcard race heats up.
Go Chargers!
Betting Line – Cowboys 3.5 point favorites
This should be a fantastic game, the Chiefs game followed by this might have me up watching NFL at 4am going into a Monday morning but it should be worth it. If you gave me a choice of teams I least want to see in a Super Bowl against the Cleveland Browns, the Eagles would start that list and Cowboys would probably be second.
Go Cowboys!
Betting Line – Packers 6.5 point favorites
The Giants moving away from the number one overall pick has been an unwelcome change over the last few weeks. I would prefer them to get back to tanking as they are desperate for a quarterback because Daniel Jones is what happens if the Cleveland Browns extend Baker Mayfield.
Go Packers!
Betting Line – Dolphins 14.0 point favorites
We want the Titans to cause an upset here and open the race for the number on seed wide open, but honestly I’m not expecting anything. The Titans can’t work out how to punt let alone win games currently.
Go Titans!
If you want to jump back to the list as the games are going on here is your quick cheat sheet as we don’t have many ‘who cares’ this week which is nice:
1pm ET – Panthers (1-11) @ Saints (5-7): Go Saints!
1pm ET – Lions (9-3) @ Bears (4-8): Go Lions!
1pm ET – Texans (7-5) @ Jets (4-8): Go Jets!
1pm ET – Colts (7-5) @ Bengals (6-6): Go Bengals!
1pm ET – Rams (6-6) @ Ravens (9-3): Go Rams!
1pm ET – Buccaneers (5-7) @ Falcons (6-6): Who cares!
4:05pm ET – Vikings (6-6) @ Raiders (5-7): Go Raiders!
4:05pm ET – Seahawks (6-6) @ 49ers (9-3): Go Seahawks!
4:25pm ET – Bills (6-6) @ Chiefs (8-4): Go Chiefs!
4:25pm ET – Broncos (6-6) @ Chargers (5-7): Go Chargers!
8:20pm ET (SNF) – Eagles (10-2) @ Cowboys (9-3): Go Cowboys!
8:15pm ET (MNF) – Packers (6-6) @ Giants (4-8): Go Packers!
8:15pm ET (MNF) – Titans (4-8) @ Dolphins (9-3): Go Titans!
Here is a bonus chart I found very interesting from PFF’s Timo Riske, he has also provided a whole range of these charts looking at playoff seeding, draft order etc:
Column | Golding’s first-year Rebels defense appears to be building block for what’s to come
Ole Miss defensive coordinator Pete Golding has been a slam dunk hire for Lane Kiffin and the Rebels. That should be made even clearer in the coming seasons…
11 months ago Ole Miss made one of their biggest offseason splashes in recent memory when Lane Kiffin brought aboard his buddy Pete Golding. Their similarities prior to joining forces in Oxford has been well-documented as they both coached under Nick Saban at Alabama for at least three seasons.
What’s the assessment of year-one after fielding an Ole Miss defense for a full 12-game regular season slate?
Improvement.
We’ll take a look at the numbers in just a moment, but Golding’s defense certainly passed the eye test for the majority of the season. Some of the highlight performances of the season included shutting down premier SEC running back Rahiem Sanders (eight carries, 15 yards), holding four opponents to less than 10 points and winning games against LSU and Texas A&M on last second defensive stands.
Even in the loss against Saban’s Crimson Tide, who’s headed to compete for this year’s National Championship, Ole Miss’ defense was good enough to pull off the upset that would’ve changed this year’s College Football Playoff picture. They held Jalen Milroe to just 225 passing yards and their only turnover came in a critical moment in the red zone that heavily helped the Rebels stay in the game. Milroe also scrambled 16 times and Golding’s quarterback spy game plan worked to perfection, as he totaled just 28 rushing yards (1.8 YPC). I digress.
However, the same can’t be said of the defense’s outing in Athens. They were completely outmatched in Week 11, but that tends to happen when you play the back-to-back defending national champions in their own backyard. That was hands down the defense’s most disappointing outing of the season, but it showed that the Rebels needed to crank it up a couple notches in the recruiting department, Kiffin said it himself following the game.
Which leads me to my next point…
Golding has simply been a game-changer on the recruiting trail. We know the success Golding enjoyed during his first offseason of work which included securing the services of veteran transfer defenders like Daijahn Anthony, Jeremiah Jean-Baptiste, John Saunders Jr., Zamari Walton and Isaac Ukwu who have had significant roles in 2023. Not only that, but he’s taken those former lower conference players and has helped further develop them into now fierce SEC defenders.
Now, he’s snowballing that momentum into something that is already shaping up to be flat out special. With 2024 National Signing Day just around the corner, Golding looks set to also secure the No. 1 2024 defensive line class in the country (Jeffery Rush, Kamrion Franklin, Kamron Beavers, William Echoles).
Just like last year, he’s also putting the work in the transfer portal. Already Golding has secured the commitments of the No. 1 rated transfer portal linebacker in former Razorback Chris Paul and the No. 1 rated JUCO linebacker in Raymond Collins. Quite the pairing already on paper. Then, just a day later the Ole Miss defense gained the commitment of junior defensive back Tahveon Nicholson out of Illinois, who was a two-year starter.
The Ole Miss defense is going to lose Deantre Prince, Zamari Walton, Daijahn Anthony, Jeremiah Jean-Baptiste, Isaac Ukwu and Monty Montgomery among others. It’s good they’re staying right on schedule and skipping things like bowl watch parties, to further better their team for next season. I don’t know if you know, but with Ole Miss being right around playoff contention not too long ago, in a four-team playoff race, next year will be looked at as playoffs or bust.
So far, they’re doing all the right things to not ‘bust’. If Golding’s unit can improve from a season in which his defense allowed three less points per game and seven less touchdowns total from the previous season (2022), then this scoring defense just might be among the elite in the SEC. They’ve also registered 34 total sacks (35 in 2022) and 16 total forced turnovers (12 interceptions). The 2022 defense did notch more turnovers with 20 total (eight interceptions), but still, Golding’s version instilled a little more confidence around the building than in years past.
If 2023 was just a stepping stone, this defense will be one to watch in the coming seasons with Golding at the controls for year two and beyond. Kickoff for the 2023 Peach Bowl between No. 11 Ole Miss (10-2) and No. 10 Penn State (10-2) is set for 11 a.m. CT and can be seen on ESPN on Saturday Dec. 30. Ole Miss stands as 3.5-point underdogs, at the time of this writing. They are currently 1-2 in bowl games under Kiffin and have appeared in the Outback Bowl (2020), Sugar Bowl (2021) and Texas Bowl (2022). Inside the Rebels will be on site for Ole Miss’ season finale and will provide more updates, quotes and stories leading up to game day.
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