Oct. 6, 2004

OXFORD, Miss. - Ole Miss fifth-year senior Jordan Dempsey has been named Southeastern Conference Men's Golfer of the Week, the league office announced Wednesday afternoon.

Dempsey, who sat out the 2003-04 season as a redshirt, returned to the line-up Sept. 20-21 and helped Ole Miss to its first tournament title since March 21, 1999. The Jacksonville, Fla., native collected three straight rounds under par (67-70-71--208, -5) to finish fourth individually as the Rebels won the 15-team Raising Cane Classic, in Hattiesburg, Miss., by 16 strokes.

In his second outing of the season, Dempsey posted a second-place effort (70-67-69--206, -7) at the 15-team Mason Rudolph Championships, in Franklin, Tenn., as Ole Miss tied for fourth. Then, in his third time on the links, Dempsey tied for second (73-73-70--216, E) at the Memphis Intercollegiate, in Cordova, Tenn., as the Rebels finished fifth.

Dempsey became the first Ole Miss golfer since Brian Rowell -- in 1995 -- to register three straight top-five efforts. His trio of finishes also come after the Rebels recorded just one top-five effort for the entire 2003-04 season.

"This is a tremendous honor for Jordan and our program," Ole Miss head coach Ernest Ross said. "Jordan is very deserving of this award. He has come back with a lot of focus and desire after redshirting last year. He has as much experience as anyone on our roster and he is a very important leader for us. Being a fifth-year senior, Jordan knows how important he is to this team. We have called on Jordan early to help lead this young group and he has responded in a very positive manner."

Dempsey leads the SEC with three top-10 finishes on the campaign and is second in stroke average at 70.00. He also occupies the No. 35 spot on Golfweek's latest national rankings.

"We will continue to expect a lot out of Jordan because he is certainly capable," Ross added. "We feel like he is one of the top golfers in the Southeastern Conference and I think he has shown that over the first three tournaments. Jordan is very talented on the course, but is also a quality person off the course. He does a great job representing our golf program and the University of Mississippi."

Ole Miss wraps up its 2004 fall slate with the Gary Koch/Cleveland Intercollegiate in Tampa, Fla. (Oct. 11-12) and CCLA Intercollegiate in Baton Rouge, La. (Oct. 25-26).