The University of Mississippi has long batted down calls to change both the “Ole Miss” moniker it often uses when talking about its athletic teams and its Rebels nickname. In 2016, for instance, Chancellor Jeffrey S. Vitter wrote in a letter to the university community that both were here to stay because they are “endearing” and because they ... help with the school’s SEO?
I can assure you that we will continue to use the terms Ole Miss and Rebels as endearing nicknames for the university. Data show that the term Ole Miss is broadly viewed as one of connection and affection, with strongly positive national (and international) recognition. It is one of the more known and respected (and frankly, envied) college brands. People searching on the Web for information about our university are seven times more likely to use the term Ole Miss than University of Mississippi, and the term Ole Miss evokes a more positive image than does even University of Mississippi. Similarly, the term Rebels, which originally was a link to the Confederacy, is used today in a completely different and positive way: to indicate someone who bucks the status quo, an entrepreneur, a trendsetter, a leader. Sharon and I are proud to be Ole Miss Rebels. However, as we continue to use the terms Ole Miss and Rebels, we must always use accompanying images and symbols that are consistent with the positive meanings we advocate.
Instead, the school has tinkered with its mascot. Colonel Reb was removed from the sidelines at the school’s athletic events in 2003, and in 2010 a new mascot — Rebel the Bear — was created after lots of student committee meetings and the like. But that mascot never quite caught on, and on Friday the school announced a new mascot that also is a shark.
A landshark, to be specific.
There’s a reason for this, even though the school is located somewhere around 300 miles from the nearest salt water. In 2008, a senior linebacker named Tony Fein (who also was a U.S. Army Veteran who served in Iraq) coined the term Landshark to describe his defensive teammates, who helped the Rebels engineer a 9-4 record. Since then, Mississippi’s defensive players — along with athletes on the school’s other teams — have celebrated big plays by putting a hand to their forehead in the shape of a shark fin. And now the Landshark is official.
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“The Landshark and ‘Fins Up’ have become synonymous with the positive spirit and strength of our athletics program and the ‘Never Quit’ attitude of Rebel Nation,” Vitter wrote in another one of his letters.
He also doubled down on the whole nickname thing:
“In closing, I want to state unequivocally that we are — and always will be — the Ole Miss Rebels. And I am asking all Rebels to unite around our new Landshark mascot.”
The new mascot has yet to be designed but will be unveiled before the 2018 football season.
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