'I'm made for it': Austin Simmons gets his shot at Ole Miss

ATLANTA -- The case for Ole Miss football optimism this year is rooted in two Austin Simmons relief appearances against Georgia last year.

The first came in April 2024, in the seventh inning of the second game of a baseball double-header at the No. 23 Bulldogs. Simmons, a lefty reliever, came in to preserve a lead and struck out two batters, including eventual MLB No. 3 overall draft pick Charlie Condon. "Slider, in," recalls Ole Miss baseball coach Mike Bianco.

The second unfolded with a bit more fanfare in Oxford on Nov. 9, as Simmons came in for a series on the football field against No. 3 Georgia. In relief of injured quarterback Jaxon Dart, Simmons led Ole Miss on a 10-play, 75-yard touchdown drive to tie the game with an unflinching calm. "Just went out there and dominated," Simmons recalled with a similar nonchalance. "Just trusted my preparation."

Bianco watched the first relief performance from the Rebel dugout, and wasn't surprised when the second one with the precious lefty unfolded at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.

"The composure didn't surprise any of us," Bianco told ESPN by phone. "He's a special guy, physically and mentally. I know he hasn't been the starter yet, but to watch what he's done and his presence on the mound in the SEC ... for him to have that composure and belief is special."

Even with the eyes of the SEC on first-year full-time starter Arch Manning, Simmons looms as one of the league's most pivotal characters for 2025. He's poised to become one of the country's breakout players if the tangibles and intangibles translate to a bigger stage.

"I just want people to just understand that there's going to be a lot more moments like that," Simmons said.

Why? He said flatly: "I just know I'm made for it."

Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin's actions show his confidence in that outcome. Simmons flashed enough talent in two seasons as a reserve to keep the noted Portal King, as Kiffin is known, out of the top-end quarterback market this offseason.

The first time that Kiffin saw Simmons throw on film, he immediately saw his loose lefty stroke and said: "He just has the Tua thing."

"There's no way you teach any of that," Kiffin said of Simmons and his former quarterback at Alabama, Tua Tagovailoa, a southpaw now with the Miami Dolphins. "They just have that."

The unique ability jives with an unconventional path that honed the rare arm talent. Simmons graduated two years early from high school and has already graduated from Ole Miss this spring with a degree in multidisciplinary studies. If he'd stuck exclusively with baseball, according to Bianco, Simmons would have been a high-round Major League Baseball pick.

Simmons, 19, in many ways has been built for this moment his whole life. His father, Dave, is a former college and professional coach who trained him intensively in both football and baseball.

Simmons is the third of seven brothers, ages 30 to 6. The first six are left-handed, and Simmons said the youngest brother, Nathan, hasn't declared a dominant hand: "He's still so young, so he's still trying to figure out," Austin Simmons said. "He wants to throw with both hands, so he just can't pick one."

There's a paradox for Simmons as he prepares to start for the first time in his college football career. His whole path has been carefully choreographed for nearly a decade, yet in his third year of college is just starting.

"I just feel like it's just the beginning, honestly, because I'm just reaching that potential right now," he said. "This is my first year really showcasing myself and frankly, no one really knows who I am until that first SEC game. So, I just can't wait to experience that moment, really just show everyone who I am."

GEORGIA COACH KIRBY Smart isn't prone to exaggerate. And when Simmons' relief football appearance from the fall is brought up to him, it's obvious the 10-play drive from eight months ago is seared in his memory.

"He went out there with ice in his veins," Smart said. "He played with no inhibition and played really well."

For someone in such a hurry to get to college by enrolling two years early, it's counter-intuitive to compliment his patience. But that's what he's shown in waiting his turn in football and developing behind Dart.

And now that his time has come, he brings a confidence and command that comes with a lifetime of preparation for the moment. Simmons' father, Dave, has curated his athletic training to maximize his skills in both football and baseball.

Dave Simmons has an affinity for hyperbole, and he estimates that when Austin Simmons was growing up he'd spent nearly eight hours a day either playing or practicing football and baseball, training to play them or doing things such as treatment and stretching to optimize performance.

He says that Ole Miss is actually easier for his son, now that he left baseball behind this spring and is only focused on one sport. "He'd really been conditioned to be a professional athlete," Dave Simmons said.

Austin Simmons says that not playing baseball has been "amazing," as he said, "Less stress on my arm."

In college football these days, being a starting quarterback is much the same as being a professional athlete -- the work, the pay and the spotlight. Simmons acknowledges that, and says his years of being consumed by intensive training has prepared him for the glare of the SEC.

He realizes that he didn't have the same social life as most teenagers growing up, a by-product of the intensity of his regiment.

"Being that invested in two sports, you're occupied the entire year, so basically you're really taking away the social life at the same time," Austin Simmons said. "I'm still building, I'm still experiencing social experiences with my teammates, but it's not the same when you're out in the real world and stuff like that. So I'm learning right now."

There's not much social life outside home for Simmons in Oxford. He does admit to being a pinch of a foodie, and he enjoys local spots Toyo, GrillHouse Oxford and Oxford Burger Company. (Along with regular Chipotle stops). Mostly, he stays in.

"Usually," he said, "I just find all my peace at home."

And that's all part of the preparation for Simmons, who grew up with his dad pounding home a simple message: "If you're a quarterback, you're different. Once you understand that, you're OK."

The messages resonated to the point where he handles the most hostile atmospheres with a preternatural calm. He promises there's more to come.

"One drive doesn't really define me as a quarterback," Simmons said. "People are going to see exactly how I play against better competition."

LANE KIFFIN WISHES he could properly describe the way a football leaves Austin Simmons' left hand. There's a smoothness, a fluidity and crispness of how it leaps out upon release. He's uncertain of the articulation -- "I'm sure there's big words for that" -- but confident in the natural ability being more nature than nurture.

"There's no way you teach any of that," Kiffin said. "I don't know [anything] about golf, but I bet there's a lot within golf swings where a coach goes like, 'Man, that guy just has this unbelievable swing. I can't really teach it.' I feel like that's the case."

So what can that natural talent translate to for Simmons and Ole Miss? It's a question that will hover over the SEC race, as Ole Miss will be favored in its first four game before hosting LSU in late September.

Along with losing Dart, a three-year starter and eventual first-round pick, Ole Miss returns the least amount of production in the SEC, per ESPN's Bill Connelly's returning production rankings. Gone are the leading runner and receiver and four starting offensive linemen.

While there's uncertainty around Simmons' supporting cast and experience, there's a strong feeling about his talent level and ceiling. Kiffin marvels at his ability to squeeze balls in tight windows, throw from different arm angles and handle everything that's been thrown at him.

Even with a gap to bridge between spot performer and the spotlight of starting in the SEC, there's a confidence in the talent to carry through the transition.

"It's easier to come in as a reliever, in both situations, pitching and quarterback, and now come in and be the guy," Kiffin said. "So there's a lot of work to be done with that, but he does have a very high ceiling."