Meet the Rebels is Back: Ole Miss will close spring with fan-favorite event for first time in six years

Ole Miss football fans on April 12 will finally get to ‘Meet the Rebels’ again. 

‘Meet the Rebels’ used to be an annual fan meet-and-greet with the current team for autographs and pictures. Ole Miss hasn’t held the event since 2019, however.

The program has brought it back in lieu of a traditional spring game. A Q&A with now-sixth-year head coach Lane Kiffin and other Ole Miss coaches will be included as well.  

The Rebels, who are replacing 16 of 22 starters, will open on Tuesday, March 18, and close Saturday, April 19. 

“In keeping with our program’s pro mindset, we are taking a business-like approach with our spring drills with the focus of improving as a team,” Kiffin said in a statement. 

“After careful thought, including the timing of other spring events, we determined it was best not to hold a spring game. We look forward to hosting a fan day for the Ole Miss family to engage with our players on a personal level.”

Ole Miss last spring operated with normal practices but opted against the normal scrimmage-like finale. 

The Rebels instead debuted the ‘Grove Bowl Games.’ The Games featured a dunk contest, 7-on-7 competition, hot-dog-eating with legend Joey Chestnut, tug-of-war and more.

Admission for ‘Meet the Rebels Day,’ as Ole Miss is calling it this year, will be free and is tentatively set for 1 p.m. CT. Rebel baseball is in town that day, too. Ole Miss (14-1) hosts Tennessee in a matchup of two of the last three national champions.

Mike Bianco’s Rebels are currently riding a 13-game win streak. They’re at South Alabama on Tuesday before opening their SEC slate against Arkansas this weekend. More details on Meet The Rebels Day will be announced in the weeks ahead.

Ole Miss last season returned 16 starters, the second-most in the SEC. The Rebels won 10 games for the third time in four years, finishing No. 11 in the final Associated Press Top 25 poll.

The Rebels will look drastically different next season. Among the starters now gone are quarterback Jaxson Dart, wide receivers Tre Harris and Jordan Watkins, tight end Caden Prieskorn, defensive linemen Princely Umanmielen, Jared Ivey, Walter Nolen and JJ Pegues, linebacker Chris ‘Pooh’ Paul and defensive backs Trey Amos, Trey Washington and John Saunders, Jr.

Austin Simmons is the ready-made, in-house replacement for Dart. Ole Miss signed a Top 20 high-school class, headlined by Caleb Cunningham, a 5-star wider receiver and Mississippi’s top-ranked recruit.

Ole Miss also has the nation’s No. 2 transfer class. 

Grambling linebacker Andrew Jones last season graded out best (81.7) of all the portal additions, according to Pro Football Focus. Jaylon Braxton (Arkansas, 75.1 grade) essentially could step in for Amos at boundary corner. Princewill Umanmielen (Nebraska, 72.6) takes over for his older brother, Princely, a one-year transfer from Florida and potential first-round NFL Draft selection.

Tight end Luke Hasz (Arkansas, 72.1) takes over for Prieskorn, while De’Zhaun Strinbling (Oklahoma State, 71.6) slides in for Harris and/or Watkins, likely Harris.

“I probably wouldn’t have been so confident if we hadn’t done some of this before,” Kiffin said of the roster overhaul. “I feel like when Matt Corral left, I feel like a lot of people thought we’re going to have this downswing and that was just kind of a Matt Corral thing. Our team, I know we won 10 games, we won 11 the year before, that’s 21 in two years, but our team this year was a better team.

“We lost three one-score games.”

“Two of them we have the ball up by four with two, two and a half minutes left and make a couple first downs and we win the game. The team before went 4-0 in one-score games, so we were actually a better team as you look at now you’ve got 10 wins and double-digit wins. That doesn’t happen very often with SEC teams and the good bowl teams.”

The second of two transfer windows opens in April for 10 days.

The Rebels are already in pursuit of North Alabama CB Ashaad Williams.

Ole Miss in January was receiving the eighth-best odds to win the 2025-26 national title, according to FanDuel. The Rebels were +2500 to win it all, according to BetOnline. BetMGM has Ole Miss’ over/under win total set at 8.5.

“This program is on the rise,” Dart said after the Gator Bowl, a 52-20 Ole Miss win over Duke. “They’re going to continue to get better, and I think it’s just a place where people really want to play and be a part of. There’s a lot of excitement and momentum going for it, and like I said, I think it’s going to continue to improve and continue to be one of the best programs in the country.”