Just days ahead of their fall camp, an Ole Miss freshman has landed himself in trouble. The Rebels’ true freshman defensive end Carmelow Reed was arrested in Oxford on Friday night.

The defensive end was arrested on July 31 in Oxford, Mississippi, on felony drug and speeding charges, according to Ole Miss on SI. The incident concerns a late-night traffic stop on a highway. According to the Lafayette County Sheriff’s Department records, Reed was initially flagged by local deputies for “exceeding speed limits set by local authorities on local highways.”

He was allegedly driving at a very high speed. The police pulled him over just before 8:51 p.m. on Friday. During their routine check of the vehicle, the police allegedly found a significant amount of narcotics or synthetic stimulants in his possession. Reed was later charged with possession of 10 to less than 30 grams of a Schedule I or II controlled substance with intent to distribute (sell).

In Mississippi, crossing this weight threshold legally elevates a simple possession charge into a felony intent-to-distribute charge, implying the individual had the amount necessary to sell or distribute the substance. 

Reed is a massive 6-foot-6, 275-pound four-star defensive end from Chicago who turned down multiple Power Four schools to sign with the Rebels. Head coach Pete Golding explicitly praised Reed’s freshman group as one of the best defensive line classes he had coached in a very long time.

Reed’s journey to Oxford

Carmelow Reed has an interesting path to Ole Miss. The Illinois prospect initially didn’t have the SEC school in his frame of reference. Early on during his recruitment, the class of 2026 defensive end committed to the Wisconsin Badgers.

However, in June 2025, six months before the early signing period, Reed decommitted from the Badgers and flipped to Ole Miss. At the time, Lane Kiffin was the head coach of the Rebels. However, the current head coach, Pete Golding, was still calling shots on the defense.

The defensive end made his name in high school playing for Rich Township and Morgan Park in Illinois. Reed had a dominating senior year, in which he earned the Rivals Illinois Defensive Player of the Year honor. He recorded 66 tackles (18 TFLs), 10 sacks, and 3 blocked kicks during that campaign.

Ole Miss has yet to comment on the latest development. It remains to be seen whether he can participate in the upcoming fall camp, which is set to begin on August 6.