[NEW ORLEANS] While fireworks exploded along the Mississippi River at “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rocking Eve” with Billy Porter, Ole Miss fans erupted as the clock struck midnight in the Napoleon Ballroom in the Sheraton New Orleans Hotel. The New Year’s Eve Bowl Bash, hosted by the Ole Miss Alumni Association and presented by Rebel Rags, was completely sold out and hosted Rebel fans of all ages.
The Compozitionz, a Jackson cover band featuring over five singers and a horn section, performed songs from all decades while attendees danced the night away into the new year. While Rebel fans celebrated the coming new year, they reminisced on their experiences with Ole Miss Football across the years and looked forward to the team’s success to come.
Scott Stevens and Scott Dockery, Ole Miss graduates from the ’80s, were thrilled to see the progress the team has made. When asked how Ole Miss football had changed since they were in school, Stevens said “It’s like the other end of the planet! We had Steve Sloan, I mean, are you kidding me?” Dockery agreed, saying “You gotta love Ole Miss for better or for worse.”
Kaitlyn Myers, a 2018 chemical engineering graduate, said the change from her time at Ole Miss to today’s team is equally as monumental. “We’ve gotten a lot better…Gotten more fun to watch, more exciting to watch. Great team this year!”
Former Ole Miss football players Sheldon Morris and Al Rice, both graduating in 2000, were also in attendance and were proud to see the progress the team made. Rice, a former Rebel linebacker, said “We’re the foundation. We had a team that really fought blood, sweat and tears for what we have now, and I really appreciate it. I really love seeing it.” Morris, a wide receiver, said their presence was more than just supporting their team. “We’re here to reconnect former players back within the university. That supports not only the Alumni Association, but also the M Club, and that’s one of the big focuses to make sure we bring the importance of being a part of the team.”
Randy Helms, who “married into” being an Ole Miss fan, said “We’ve got a great coach, we’ve got a great quarterback and we’ve got great team chemistry, what more could you ask for?” That is definitely true for this year’s team, but as Mike Neelly, a 1988 UM grad said, Ole Miss football “always gives you a heart attack.”
Kim, who has been an Ole Miss fan for 50 years and whose children attended the university, was happy to see the commitment our current players, including quarterback Matt Corral, have to the team. “When you’re at Ole Miss, you stay at Ole Miss. You don’t opt-out.”
Kirk Purdom, CEO of the Alumni Association, was thrilled with the turnout and was optimistic for the game and following events. He was happy to see “a bunch of Ole Miss fans having a good time,” with the only slight hiccup being “running out of beer at a certain point, but (the caterers) were bringing more in.”
This celebration not only carried Rebel fans into 2022, but into a future of Ole Miss success and support.
