Kermit Davis explains how Ole Miss basketball snagged Daeshun Ruffin, improved recruiting

OXFORD — Less than 18 months ago, the Ole Miss men's basketball program had never signed a top-50 recruit. Now, Kermit Davis has signed two in two years.

Ole Miss announced the signing of three players for the Class of 2021 on Wednesday. Included in that group was Callaway High product Daeshun Ruffin. The 5-foot-9 point guard rates as the 35th-best player in the 247 Sports composite rankings for this class, making him the highest-rated recruit ever to sign to play men's basketball at Ole Miss.

The record Ruffin is breaking isn't that old, though. Last year, Ole Miss signed shooting guard Matthew Murrell, a Memphis native who ranked No. 39 in the 247 Sports composite rankings. Murrell will make his Ole Miss debut this season as the Rebels' lone true freshman.

Prior to Murrell and Ruffin, the highest-rated recruit in Ole Miss history was forward Reginald Buckner, who in 2009 ranked as the No. 54 recruit in the nation. Buckner was one of just two players ranked inside the top 90 players in the country to sign with Ole Miss before Murrell and Ruffin.

Davis is now entering his third year as Ole Miss' coach and has signed at least one four-star recruit in three-straight classes. Prior to Davis, Ole Miss had signed three four-star recruits in its previous seven classes combined.

The veteran coach listed many factors as to why Ole Miss has experienced this surge in recruiting success.

"Number one, you've got to have a great product to sell, and we do at Ole Miss," Davis said. "You've got to have facilities to sell and we've got some of the very best in college basketball. Maybe The Pavilion is the best arena in our league. Not the biggest, but the best. Then you've got to have a staff that is very good and believes in the product that they sell. We've got that."

Beyond that, Davis said he uses the environment of Oxford to sell his program. He said he knows he won't be able to court players who are looking for a city-living experience. But any time he finds a recruit looking for a great college experience, he knows he can hook him with the supportive, small-town feel Oxford offers.

Additionally, Davis said the players he's already successfully recruited are as good of a recruiting tool as any.

"I can't tell you how our players sell it," Davis said. "We've got guys from L.A., Chicago, Harlem, Orlando, everywhere. They all love Ole Miss. They enjoy Oxford. They just enjoy going to school here. So if you get a kid that has a relationship with our players, they'll convince you that this is a great, great place to go to school."

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Courting Ruffin was a slightly different matter. He isn't from Los Angeles or Chicago or Harlem or Orlando. Ruffin is from Jackson, and that proximity to Ole Miss gave Davis and his staff one of the earliest cracks at recruiting Ruffin to their program.

Davis said he first saw Ruffin playing in a 16-and-under tournament in 2018, just after the end of Ruffin's freshman season. Even though Davis says Ruffin couldn't have weighed more than 140 pounds, he said he could see something special.

"There was just a way he moved, how tough he was," Davis said. "He was just dynamic. Even at that age, just one of those electrifying guys that I enjoyed. We got back and offered him on the spot and just from there the recruiting process started."

Ruffin developed into a player who Davis describes as "maybe the most electrifying scorer" in the Class of 2021. There are 118 players rated as four- or five-star recruits in this class and Ruffin is the shortest of them all. But Davis says he's "built like a running back," and that toughness combined with his athletic burst makes him a player who could help carry Ole Miss to new heights in the future.

Recruiting Ruffin was surprisingly easy for Ole Miss. When Ruffin named his top six schools, they were all schools from the SEC. Five of the six were schools from the SEC West. 

Staying close to home was obviously a priority, and one Davis assured Ruffin on.

"When he committed to us in the summer, he loved Ole Miss," Davis said. "He wanted to be close to home. He loves the fact that in 2:15 his family can be right here. He won a state championship in our building. We're always anxious, don't get me wrong. But there was never any doubt this was where he'd be. We knew for sure he'd sign on the first day."

Contact Nick Suss at 601-408-2674 or nsuss@gannett.com. Follow @nicksuss on Twitter.