By Ole Miss Sports

Ole Miss football senior quarterback Jaxson Dart has been named a finalist for the 2024 Manning Award and senior defensive tackle JJ Pegues will serve on the SEC Football Community Service Team.

Dart is one of 10 finalists for the Manning Award, which was created by the Allstate Sugar Bowl in honor of the college football accomplishments of Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning. In college, Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning combined for over 25,000 passing yards and 201 touchdowns while playing in 10 bowl games and earning four bowl MVP awards. Archie was the No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft, while both Peyton and Eli were selected No. 1 overall.

The winner will be announced after the College Football Playoff National Championships in January, and will again be selected by a voting panel – which includes national media and each of the Mannings – after the postseason. It is the only quarterback award that includes the candidates’ postseason performances in its balloting.

Dart – a native of Kaysville, Utah – is in his third season as Ole Miss’ starting quarterback in 2024 after transferring from USC his freshman season in 2021. In his overall career, Dart is 825-of-1,272 (64.9 percent) for 11,566 yards and 77 touchdowns with a career rushing line of 1,498 yards and 14 scores on 381 carries – making him one of four active FBS quarterbacks at 13,000 yards of total offense at 13,064.

Pegues honored for community service

Ole Miss football senior defensive tackle JJ Pegues was selected to the Southeastern Conference Football Community Service Team, the league office announced on Thursday morning.

The SEC names a Community Service Team for each of its 22 league-sponsored sports, looking to highlight an athlete from each school who gives back to their community through superior service efforts.

This is the second consecutive appearance on the SEC Community Service Team for Pegues, an Oxford native who has made a tremendous impact to the Oxford community and is an exemplary role model on and off the field.

Pegues is a member of the 2024 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team and was a semifinalist for the Allstate Wuerffel Trophy, college football’s most prestigious community service award. Pegues serves as the football team’s representative on the Ole Miss Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, and he is a member of the SEC Football Leadership Council.

Pegues hosted his own event in partnership with Allstate to adopt five local students to provide them with a holiday winter pack, which consisted of winter clothes and shoes. This was in addition to his Neighborhood Hero Back to School event, a day of fun with local school children that also served as a giveaway for school necessities each of the last two years.