As he transitioned from high school to junior college, the culture shock of moving from the white sand of Hawaii to the desert sand of New Mexico proved bracing for Jordan Ta'amu. But arguably no moment in his recent memory proved more of a surprise than a spring ball meeting with Ole Miss offensive coordinator Phil Longo last year.

Just a few days into spring practice, Longo, doubting his backup quarterback's motivation, pulled Ta’amu into his office to ask a question: “How much do you love the game?”

Initially, Longo received only a strange look in return. “Like, ‘why would you ask me that?’” Ta'amu remembers thinking.

But after a period of feeling each other out, coach and quarterback developed an understanding. Eight months later, in the wake of Hugh Freeze's firing and under the cloud of a bowl ban, Shea Patterson suffered a season-ending knee injury. Ta’amu stepped in and posted three consecutive 350+ yard passing performances, giving new hope to a program in desperate need of it.

Entering the 2018 season, Patterson is gone. Though Ta’amu has promise, there's no mistaking his pedigree for Patterson's. The latter ranked as the nation’s top overall QB recruit in the 2016 class. The former’s Division I options out of high school were highlighted by a walk-on safety offer from Hawaii.

Yet Ta’amu entered Ole Miss’ spring practice last month as the team’s incumbent starter, with the numbers to back up that title.

Ta’amu passed for 1,682 yards, 11 touchdowns against four interceptions and completed 66.5 percent of his passes a year ago. That’s a higher completion percentage and better touchdown-to-interception ratio than Patterson carried in the same number of games.

“The attitude was, ‘Shea is hurt, so Jordan is going to take the lead and be the starting quarterback,’” Longo told 247Sports. “I don’t really think we’ve missed a beat, truthfully.”

It's fortunate for Longo and Ta'amu that they've found a way to work so well together because it's not a relationship that either of them chose. Longo arrived at Ole Miss just a few days after Ta’amu signed. In Longo's initial meeting with the Rebel coaches, they threw on film of two JUCO quarterbacks and asked which one Longo liked best. One clip was of McLane Carter (Texas Tech) and the other of Ta’amu. Longo, after some consideration, singled out the QB from the New Mexico Military Institute.

“Well that’s good,” Longo heard. “That’s who we got.”

The pair didn’t get to interact much in the initial weeks after Longo’s hiring. Recruiting and NCAA rules limit the amount of time coaches can spend around players in the spring semester. That led to Longo having his concerns a few days into spring ball with his new QB. Ta’amu wasn’t particularly vocal. He didn’t ask a lot of questions. He didn’t beat down Longo’s door at all hours to chat.

Not knowing Ta’amu well at the time, Longo wondered if his QB needed a greater sense of urgency. So he asked the question.

“I said, ‘I love the game a lot coach. It means the world to me,’” Ta’amu recalls.

Ta’amu is a calm presence. Longo said his purpose of the day is to “hang loose.” But, in the minutes following that question, Ta’amu expressed himself and his love for the game to Longo.

It’s not hard to find signs of Ta’amu’s passion if you know where to look. An all-state player at Pearl City High School in Hawaii, Ta’amu found himself overlooked in part because of his stature (6-foot-2, 180 pounds) and because he played in Division II – a competition level below what other Hawaiian standouts like Marcus Mariota and Tua Tagovailoa faced in high school. Ta’amu didn’t let go of his dream, though. He wanted to play QB, so he got a plane and landed in the deserts of New Mexico. After two years there, Ta’amu could’ve gone to a number of schools in the country and had a good chance to start. Instead, he chose a program in which he’d be stuck behind Patterson. Ta’amu didn’t care. He wanted to be in the SEC because he wanted to compete with the best in the world.

“I told my parents: ‘I want to stay here and fight until I got the starting job,’” Ta’amu said.

That spirit came across to Longo, and after that meeting, QB and coach were much closer. Longo adjusted the way he coached Ta’amu. The authoritative techniques that many pupils embraced throughout Longo's career didn’t work as well with Ta’amu. Instead, Longo now pulls Ta’amu in close and lets him know exactly what’s needed.

“He’s really intelligent and will give you everything he’s got,” Longo said. “You’ve just got to ask.”

Longo asked a lot of Ta’amu his first year on campus. In Longo’s practice system, the No. 1 and 2 quarterbacks split reps evenly. In Longo’s mind, the only way a backup QB will be ready to fill in for a starter is if the reps are distributed equally. Patterson and Ta’amu rotated in and out throughout the spring and fall camp.

By the time Patterson’s injury occurred Oct. 21 against LSU, Ta’amu was ready. Ole Miss lost his first start against Arkansas by a point, but Ta’amu threw for 368 yards, ran for 78 more and completed 20-of-30 passes. Then Ta’amu spurred a late-season Rebel resurgence. Ole Miss went 3-1 in its last four games, including a resounding Egg Bowl win against a ranked Mississippi State team. Ta’amu threw for 300-plus yards three times in five appearances as a starter, completing better than 66.7 percent of his passes in each of those contests.

“I just needed a little opportunity,” Ta’amu said. “I knew exactly what was going on. I knew our game plan.”

He wasn’t perfect. Ta’amu struggled against Texas A&M (189 yards, 55.9 cmp%) and a good Bulldog defense (247 yards, 45.5 cmp%). But there’s plenty of optimism surrounding the rising senior entering 2018. That’s especially true considering who the Rebels bring back on offense. Wide receiver A.J. Brown and left tackle Greg Little both drew an “elite” grade from PFF College a year ago, and they’re far from the only talented offensive players remaining in Oxford.

Ta’amu’s priority offseason directive from Longo is twofold: 1. Expand your knowledge of the offense. 2. Build on your leadership role, which means being more vocal. Of the first test, Longo said Ta’amu can run through the Rebel offense and describe each offensive player’s role on every snap. As for the former … well, Longo would like his QB to vocalize a little more.

Then again, Longo knows his signal caller much better this spring than last. He’s confident Ta'amu is loud enough when it comes down to it.

“It’s just been fun to watch somebody like Jordan take control,” Longo said. “I’m really excited to watch him this fall.”