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Auburn football: Does anyone really know what the Ole Miss mascot is?

By Mary Kate Hughes

Auburn football Nov 22, 2018; Oxford, MS, USA; Mississippi Rebels mascot Tony the Landshark walks on the field before the game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Bush-USA TODAY Sports
Auburn football Nov 22, 2018; Oxford, MS, USA; Mississippi Rebels mascot Tony the Landshark walks on the field before the game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Bush-USA TODAY Sports /
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It’s that time of year again, Auburn football fans, time to face the Ole Miss Rebels…or black bears…or land sharks. We’re not really sure. People make fun of Auburn for being the Tigers and saying “War Eagle!” but that doesn’t really come close to the mess that is the Ole Miss mascot.

The Ole Miss football team first became the Rebels in 1936, according to the Columbia Missourian, when Ben Guider coined the name during a competition. Later on came Colonel Reb, a white-bearded man with a cane and red coat, based off of a “Blind Jim,” a man who joined the team as the mascot in 1896.

However, when the confederate image of Colonel Reb began to raise controversy, the University rightly changed the mascot to the black bear, “Rebel the Bear” in 2010. Rebel the Bear was Ole Miss’ mascot for seven whole years, but it never really caught on.

Finally, in 2017, another competition was held in which the student body chose a new mascot, Tony the Landshark. Per Lauren Polanski in the same article, the new mascot is named after 2008 Ole Miss linebacker Tony Fein:

"The tradition began in 2008 after an Ole Miss victory in the Cotton Bowl. A defensive team senior linebacker, Tony Fein, started it all. Fein had joined the U.S. Army right out of high school and was the recipient of the Pat Tillman Award by the Military Order of the Purple Heart.While serving a one-year tour in the Iraq War, Fein’s unit nickname was “the landsharks,” according to Red Cup Rebellion. His fins-up sign was a gesture of his aggressive plays on the field."

So while Tony the Landshark may be the actual mascot of the football team, they are still referred to as the Rebels with hardly any mention of land sharks, leaving many Auburn football fans confused during 2021’s Ole Miss hate week:

It’s okay, Ole Miss. Not everyone can have a National Champion like Aubie as their mascot.

Auburn football will face off against the Ole Miss Rebels (Landsharks?) this Saturday from Jordan-Hare Stadium at 6:00 p.m. central time.

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