Lane Kiffin borrows Brian Kelly's quarterback move. I call it the blackjack model | Toppmeyer

When Brian Kelly arrived at LSU a little more than a year ago, he inherited a quarterback situation many first-year coaches would envy. Myles Brennan and Garrett Nussmeier had starting experience. Brennan was a veteran, Nussmeier had flashed potential as a freshman, and Kelly signed an exciting recruit, Walker Howard.

Then Kelly did something bold: He risked every one of those in-house options by hooking Jayden Daniels out of the transfer portal. It was a gamble, but not reckless, because Kelly knew that significantly elevating LSU’s ceiling required upgrading the quarterback talent.

Daniels won the job, and LSU exceeded expectations in 2022 by winning the SEC West. In a turning-point triumph, Daniels propelled LSU past Ole Miss, outdueling Rebels quarterback Jaxson Dart.

Kelly became a case study in the value of using the transfer portal to make a quarterback upgrade, even when incumbents return.

Now, Rebels coach Lane Kiffin has embraced a fearless pivot in the mold of Kelly’s 2022 LSU Tigers. Had Kiffin not signed a transfer quarterback this offseason, Ole Miss would have been positioned for a second straight winning season behind Dart, himself a transfer last year from Southern Cal. Dart affects defenses with his dual-threat ability, but his inconsistencies and miscues as a passer – his 11 interceptions were the second-most in the SEC – plus the Rebels' need for depth made the transfer portal too tempting to ignore.

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Dart may improve in his second year in Kiffin’s system (Matt Corral did), but Kiffin didn’t put all his eggs in the incumbent’s basket.

He signed Oklahoma State’s veteran starter Spencer Sanders in the same week he plundered Howard, Kelly’s first quarterback signee at LSU. Now, Ole Miss will enter spring practice with one of the SEC's deepest quarterback competitions, much like LSU a year ago.

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Treading water with Dart would have been the equivalent of standing on a blackjack hand featuring an ace-seven against the dealer’s face card. You’ve got 18. A decent hand. Still, smart blackjack players know that proper strategy calls for being aggressive and hitting your “soft 18” to improve the chance of beating the dealer’s upturned face card, which points to a strong hand.

Kiffin’s additions of Sanders and Howard suggests he wouldn’t be one of those squeamish blackjack players I so often see losing their money on the cheap tables.

“My job is to put together the best roster every year,” Kiffin said earlier this month.

If Ole Miss accelerates, Kiffin may question the need to ever sign another high school quarterback.

In fact, he’s already questioned it, both in his words and through his actions.

Kiffin last signed a high school quarterback two years ago and, although he’s recruited some prospects who didn’t ink with the Rebels, he also sees the upside of playing the portal.

“Most people say if you sign 25 high school kids, you’re building for the future more — but are you?” Kiffin told The Athletic last year. “(The) analytics of (a transfer) staying in your program are higher than the high school guy.”

Four-star quarterback recruit Demond Williams is committed to Ole Miss’ 2024 class, but the Rebels' current roster includes no scholarship quarterbacks who signed with them out of high school.

The NCAA loosened its transfer rules in 2021, allowing immediate eligibility for any first-time transfer. However, if an undergraduate player transfers a second time, he would need an NCAA waiver to be immediately eligible at his new institution. Otherwise, he must sit out a season.

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In other words, if a rising junior like Dart transfers for a second time while an undergraduate, he would require a waiver for immediate eligibility.

Of course, Ole Miss shouldn’t want Dart to transfer. Its best quarterback depth chart features Sanders, Dart and Howard battling for the job.

Kiffin, a former NFL coach, equates Ole Miss' additions to the professional model. He compared the pickup of Sanders, who has thrown for 9,545 yards in his career, to signing a veteran free agent and likened the addition of Walker to an NFL Draft pick.

A key distinction: In the NFL, a quarterback that loses his starting job or is dissatisfied with playing time can’t scramble for the transfer portal.

Undeniable, though, is the fact that Ole Miss’ quarterback depth chart is more talented today than it was three months ago. The same was true for LSU a year ago, and Kelly's bold maneuvering paid off.

Call it the Kelly model, the blackjack model or the NFL model. Whatever the lingo, Kiffin played his hand aggressively in hopes of raising the Rebels’ potential.

Blake Toppmeyer is an SEC Columnist for the USA TODAY Network. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @btoppmeyer.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY NETWORK: Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss follow Brian Kelly's QB strategy with transfers