Originally from Utah, current New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart’s football journey has taken him across the country. Drafted 25th overall in April’s NFL Draft, Dart now looks towards a primetime Thursday Night Football matchup against the NFC East rival Philadelphia Eagles.
While his NFL career is still very young, with only two games started so far, Dart is responsible for an explosive college career that helped turn the Ole Miss Rebels into constant SEC title contenders. Let’s take a look at his journey.
Jaxson Dart Begins His Career as a USC Backup
While Jaxson Dart originally considered attending Arizona State, he eventually decided to join the USC Trojans, where he was backing up Kedon Slovis. While in Los Angeles, Dart saw occasional snaps in garbage time and filled in for an injured Slovis.
In his first career appearance — a 45-14 victory over Washington State — he completed 30 of his 46 pass attempts for 391 yards, four touchdowns, and two interceptions while scrambling for 32 more yards. Dart, however, didn’t get his first start until Week 10 against the rival UCLA Bruins.
- PFSN College QBi Score: 85.4 (B)
- Completions: 117
- Attempts: 189
- Yards: 1,353
- TDs: 9
- INTs: 5
- Rush Attempts: 22
- Rush Yards: 43
- Rush TDs: 2
Dart Starts Fresh in Oxford, Mississippi, With the Rebels
Following Dart’s freshman year in 2021, he transferred from USC. Lincoln Riley had just been named head coach, and Caleb Williams followed him, meaning the starting role was occupied.
The young passer decided he would try his hand in the SEC, joining the Lane Kiffin-led Rebels. At this time, Ole Miss was still trying to pave its own way in the conference. In his first season in Oxford, Dart played in all 13 games, leading the team to an 8-5 record and completing 226 passes for 2,974 yards and 20 touchdowns to just 11 picks.
While the 2022 team ended up losing to Texas Tech in the Texas Bowl, this was just the start of a happy marriage in Oxford between the journeyman coach and his new quarterback.
- PFSN College QBi Score: 78.3 (C+)
- Completions: 226
- Attempts: 362
- Yards: 2,974
- TDs: 20
- INTs: 11
- Rush Attempts: 128
- Rush Yards: 614
- Rush TDs: 1
Dart Hits His Stride With Lane Kiffin and the Rebels
Heading into 2023, Dart and the Ole Miss Rebels looked to finally put together a championship season. While the team slipped up in losses to No. 13 Alabama and No. 2 Georgia, the team won 11 total games, culminating in a New Year’s Six Peach Bowl victory over No. 10 Penn State and eventual teammate Abdul Carter.
Over the course of the season, Dart put up video game-like numbers, completing 65.1% of his total passes for over 3,000 yards. Not only did he log nine games with at least two all-purpose touchdowns, but he also surpassed 150 passing yards in all but two games.
- PFSN College QBi Score: 79.0 (C+)
- Completions: 233
- Attempts: 358
- Yards: 3,364
- TDs: 23
- INTs: 5
- Rush Attempts: 119
- Rush Yards: 389
- Rush TDs: 8
Ole Miss, Dart Falter in His Senior Year
Dart’s junior year ended up being his and Ole Miss’s best chance at winning an SEC title or securing a College Football Playoff berth. Despite their 4-0 start to the 2024 season, the Rebs fell to Kentucky at home 20-17, putting the team on its back heels. In that loss, Dart passed for 261 yards and a touchdown.
The team’s second loss came two weeks later, when they fell to the LSU Tigers in Baton Rouge in overtime. While “Death Valley” is notorious for being a tough place for opposing teams to perform, he walked out with over 300 yards, a touchdown, and a pick.
Ole Miss’s third loss this season was one of Dart’s few college blemishes. In a low-scoring 24-17 showdown with Florida in Gainesville, Dart threw two picks. Still, the team ended up winning the Gator Bowl against Duke before the QB hung up his powder blue and red.
- PFSN College QBi Score: 84.9 (B)
- Completions: 276
- Attempts: 398
- Yards: 4,279
- TDs: 29
- INTs: 6
- Rush Attempts: 124
- Rush Yards: 495
- Rush TDs: 3
