Ole Miss students want say in Colonel Reb replacement

The Ole Miss student body decided it wants to have a say in the school’s new mascot search.
Out of 3,366 votes cast, 2,510 were in favor of the student body having a voice in finding a replacement for Colonel Reb, who was removed from the field as Ole Miss tried to shy away from racially divisive stereotypes. There were 856 no votes.
Sparky Reardon, Ole Miss’ Dean of Students, said there will be a student committee selected to put together mascot options.
“We want to make sure it’s representative of our student body,” Reardon said. He also said that administration and alumni would be involved, though the details hadn’t been finalized.
Artair Rogers, the president of UM’s associated student body, was happy with the outcome.
“My goal was primarily to give voice to the students,” Rogers is quoted as saying in a news release sent out by the school.
Some Ole Miss alums have said they expect the school to do away with the school’s athletic nickname as well.
Dan Jones, UM’s chancellor, said in a news release that won’t happen.
“Our students think of themselves as Ole Miss Rebels,” Jones is quoted as saying in the news release. “They are today’s Ole Miss Rebels and they want a new on-field mascot that represents their spirit and energy. They will lead the effort to create a mascot that they think will improve school spirit and the game-day experiences for themselves and others.”
While there’s still substantial support for Colonel Reb on campus, many Ole Miss students said it was time to move on and find some other symbol to represent the school.
But not everyone was thrilled with that decision.
“My mascot is Colonel Reb,” said student Corey Clark, from Southaven. “And if we’re not going to have him, then I don’t want another mascot. That’s why I voted no. We’ve been fine without a mascot for several years and I don’t mind it staying that way.”
Reardon said the turnout for Tuesday’s vote was typical of a normal student-body election.
Even if the student body had voted no, there still was the possibility that school administration would introduce a new mascot. The difference is there would be no guarantee of student involvement in the decision.