Through the first years of the NIL era, Ole Miss became one of the leaders in the space. Fueled by support from The Grove Collective, the Rebels have consistently put together strong transfer portal classes and are retaining key players for 2026,

"My Ole Miss fandom started as a marriage compromise with The Zebra Tent," Jane Foster said. She actually grew up in Starkville and attended Mississippi State University. She met and married her Ole Miss fan of a husband 20 years ago and that is when she also fell in love with Oxford and tailgating at Ole Miss.

OXFORD, Miss. — Amid the festive chaos of a College Football Playoff tailgate in The Grove, a proud Bill Hughs surveyed the Tulane oasis he had created. “I don’t know how we did it, just starting on Monday,” Hughs said. “But we did it.”

The 49-year-old Carter — who played basketball for the Rebels in the late 1990s — didn’t play a snap in Ole Miss’ 39-34 victory over Georgia in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals. But in some ways, he might be the most important person for a football program that hasn’t acheived this much success since the early 1960s.

Ole Miss football games are soundtracked by a familiar refrain. Between touchdowns, canons and cheers exists a six-line sonnet that has proven especially memorable in Oxford, Miss. Hotty Toddy has been a steady part of the Rebels' game day routine for the better part of a century.

After No. 6 Ole Miss upset No. 3 Georgia 39-34 in the College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl on New Year's Day, Rebels athletic director Keith Carter tracked down coach Pete Golding on the field at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.

The Miami Hurricanes made history on Thursday Night in their thriller Fiesta Bowl victory over Ole Miss in the CFP semifinals.