Mixed emotions season is officially upon us! Time to say goodbye to some familiar faces as a new era begins in college football. But right now, who left the CFB fans with a riot of emotions? That’s none other than Ole Miss Rebels quarterback Jaxson Dart. For Dart’s parents, this ride has been a truly emotional one.

His mother, Lara Dart, must be beaming with pride to see her son fly high and spread his wings in the NFL. It must be even more special for the proud mother to have someone like HC Lane Kiffin to guide her son. So, she thought of pouring some love on social media too.   

Jaxson and Lane Kiffin’s heartfelt moment made Lara Dart emotional 

Ole Miss is surely going to miss their ‘Dark Horse.’ He got that tag for a reason. Remember the time when Dart caught the spotlight to keep the Eli Manning legacy alive? Yes, the Ole Miss QB once went to train himself at the Manning Passing Academy. That’s when the two-time Super Bowl champion went all head over heels for Dart. “And Jaxson. I’m rooting for them. I want (Dart) to break—he’s probably broken all my records—I want him to break all of them. I want him to go have a big year and go get that SEC Championship,” stated Manning.

Back then, Dart ran 3,782 passing yards short of beating the legend’s record. The fact that the quarterback got the opportunity to flourish in Ole Miss, the credit goes to HC Kiffin for trusting him. And who knows it the best?

Has to be Kiffin’s mother, Dart. On January 17, the Clipped in the sip page on Instagram posted a reel. It captured Dart’s journey with the Rebels. The first clip showed the quarterback locked in a tight hug with his HC. The way Kiffin held Dart captured a kind of father-son bond. If we scout through the comment section, we could find Lara’s message. Her one-word response, “♥️”, shows how she cherishes the bond between her son and HC Kiffin. Do you remember that heartfelt embrace?      

It was the Egg Bowl that marked Jaxson Dart’s last game with Ole Miss. When it hit the quarterback that the next time his program would take the field at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, it would have a new quarterback, he couldn’t hold back his tears. So after the Rebels’ 26-14 win over Mississippi State in the Bowl on November 29, he gave Kiffin a tight hug.

Later in an interview, the quarterback revealed, “And Coach Kiffin was my biggest influence and someone that helped guide me through this process. I just told him I love him.” Now his journey into the unknown begins. 

How Jaxson Dart steps closer to the NFL spotlight

Dart has officially declared for the 2025 NFL Draft, per a post on his personal X account. Yes, we know the Ole Miss QB is not viewed in the upper echelon of quarterbacks. He is far away from the limelight that Shedeur Sanders and Cam Ward enjoy. However, he is gradually catching up with the hype as he is right after them.

As per ESPN’s Mel Kiper’s rankings, the Ole Miss QB holds the No.3 rank. Looks like it took Dart a 400-yard, four-touchdown performance in a standalone bowl game against a Top 15 defense to gain the attention. But better late than never.

As per the reports by A to Z Sports, multiple NFL franchises now see Kiffin’ Dart as their QB2 in the class. His stats do all the talking. Dart finished the 2024 campaign with 4,279 passing yards and 29 touchdowns. The QB came off strong with nearly a 70% completion rate of his pass attempts. Plus, he did come off with flying colors, finishing fourth all-time in SEC history in total offense.

“He’s gonna be a major steal in the draft. Throws the ball down the field as well as anyone, which I realize is kinda this lost skill in today’s game, but that’s what makes him interesting. Get Dart a couple speed guys and he can really hurt you,” stated Jordan Schultz, FOX Sports NFL Insider.

Did you know that he shattered Chad Kelly’s single-season passing yardage record while also surpassing the 12,000-yard total offense mark? So now you know how Kiffin molded Dart into a “major steal” deal.