DeMarquis Gates Commits to Ole Miss: Rebels Land Talented 4-Star LB

DeMarquis Gates, a 4-star outside linebacker, committed to Ole Miss on Thursday as head coach Hugh Freeze and the Rebels appear poised to continue their hot streak on the recruiting trail.

Gates is a great commitment for the Rebels, and Ole Miss fans have to be hoping for this to be one of many big high school catches for 2014.

Kipp Adams of ESPN.com reports on the commitment:

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Linebacker DeMarquis Gates (Hampton, Ga./Lovejoy) became the first prospect in Georgia to pledge to Ole Miss in the 2014 class, less than two months after the No. 1 prospect in the country, Robert Nkemdiche, signed with the Rebels. Gates follows in the footsteps of Lovejoy tight end Arshad Jackson, who signed with Ole Miss in 2013. 

"DeMarquis committed to Ole Miss this morning," Lovejoy head coach Al Hughes said. 

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According to the 247Sports Composite Rankings, Gates is the No. 16 outside linebacker in the 2014 class. He checks in at 6'2'', 205 pounds.

Gates projects to be a good player at the college level, so this is a big addition for the Rebels. His commitment also represents another player from Georgia who has committed to Ole Miss, as noted by Adams. That trend that will only lead to good things for Ole Miss.

Georgia is a hotbed for some of the best recruits in the nation on a yearly basis, so if Freeze can continue to establish pipelines in the state, the Ole Miss program has a legitimate shot at growing into a contender in the SEC.

Last season, the Rebels made waves throughout the college football recruiting world by landing Nkemdiche, the nation's No. 1 recruit, but Freeze also landed four other players from the state of Georgia—3-star tight end Jackson, 3-star wide receiver Evan Engram, 3-star wideout Bobby Hill and 3-star running back David Kamara.

As Adams pointed out, the pipeline to Lovejoy will be fortified through this commitment, but the overall foothold in Georgia is huge for Ole Miss.

The Rebels went out in 2013 and shocked the recruiting world by bringing in a class of epic proportions. If Freeze wants to build a legitimate SEC contender though, it's going to take more than one good recruiting cycle. Success needs to be a constant.

So far, so good on the 2014 recruiting trail for Ole Miss, which now has eight 2014 commitments.

Gates represents an important recruiting win for Ole Miss, and the Rebels are once again starting to trend in a positive direction.