Five-star 2026 QB set to visit Ole Miss later this month

Ole Miss is beginning to prepare for life after Jaxson Dart after news that one of the nation's top quarterbacks in the 2026 cycle is expected to visit Oxford in late July, per On3's Chad Simmons.

Quarterback Ryder Lyons (Folsom, CA.) is one of the country's most highly sought after prospects and is already garnering plenty of interest from the elite programs in the SEC. Lyons checks in as the No. 11 prospect in the 2026 class and ranks as the No. 3 quarterback, according to On3's Industry Rankings.

While no specific dates have been announced, Lyons is also planning to visit Alabama, Auburn and Texas A&M in July. Interestingly enough, Lyons' older brother Walker was a four-star tight end prospect in the 2023 cycle and is currently playing his college football at USC, so the Trojans are another program to keep an eye on.

Lane Kiffin has had plenty of recent success developing quarterbacks with west coast ties. Matt Corral led Ole Miss to a 10-3 record in 2021 earning second-team All-SEC honors and was drafted in the third round of the NFL Draft. Dart is from Utah, but transferred to Ole Miss from USC and not only has an opportunity to take the Rebels to the College Football Playoff, but also has a good chance of hearing his name called in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft with another efficient season under center.

Ole Miss' options behind Dart are redshirt sophomore Walker Howard and redshirt freshman Austin Simmons. While positive reports continue to trickle out on both backups, in today's transfer portal world there is no telling whether or not they will stick around for the long haul.

Lyons will be a recruit worth monitoring for Ole Miss fans moving forward. It remains to be seen when he will make it to campus, but it's important to note that Juice Fest kicks off on July 27 and would be the perfect opportunity to show Lyons what the program is all about.