It couldn’t have been a good weekend for Ole Miss quarterback Nathan Stanley.

One morning you wake up and you’re the unchallenged starter, now that freshman Raymond Cotton flaked out like a fresh croissant and left Oxford with what Houston Nutt called a case of “freshmanitis.”

Would more cowbell cure that? Only if you were in Starkville.

Then the next morning you wake up and you find oft-dismissed former Pac-10 player of the year Jeremiah Masoli is your teammate and is likely going to take over your job.

The Rebels needed the depth, since now they only have two scholarship quarterbacks on the roster. Junior college transfer Randall Mackey is likely a Wild Rebel do-it-all candidate who has never taken a Division I snap. Stanley has some experience in mop-up duty, throwing 23 passes, and that’s about it.

With that in mind, Jevan Snead probably wishes he would’ve stayed in Oxford, especially after he was cut by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before camp. What a precipitous fall from Heisman candidate last summer to a pink slip from an NFL team this summer.

Now for the Rebels’ new quarterback: considering Masoli’s background of run-ins with the law, is it the right decision by Nutt to bring him aboard?

To quote Sarah Palin, you betcha.

For one, Masoli apparently was doing something right at Oregon. He graduated with his bachelor’s degree in three years, something that most non-athletes can’t achieve in four.

There are risks involved. Nutt has told Masoli that he’s on a one-strike policy. But if something happens, where is the harm? Nutt whiffed on former Florida safety Jamar Hornsby, who was arrested again after becoming a Rebel. Nutt acted swiftly to cut ties. It was a brief public relations hit, nothing more. The timing in Nutt’s interest in Masoli is quite convenient, but can you blame Nutt for pursuing a player once considered a Heisman candidate?

The rewards could be huge. The Rebels, predicted to finish last in the SEC West, are now in the discussion for a league title with Masoli at the helm. He instantly becomes the most physically talented and accomplished quarterback in the SEC besides Arkansas flamethrower Ryan Mallett and Alabama’s Greg McElroy.

Masoli definitely has game. He passed for 3,891 yards and rushed for 1,386 more, accounting for 51 total touchdowns in his two years wearing the ugliest uniforms Phil Knight and his Nike minions can design at Oregon.

Nutt could also have a big impact on a troubled young man’s life at the same time. This country is a very forgiving one. Masoli’s emergence as a leader on and off the field for the Rebels would be a great tale of redemption, of someone taking full advantage of a second chance.

Just imagine if the tale ends with a trip to Atlanta.

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Steve Wilson is sports editor of The Vicksburg Post. You can follow him on Twitter at vpsportseditor. He can be reached at 601-636-4545, ext. 142 or at swilson@vicksburgpost.com.