Countdown To Kickoff: 96 Days

Today's countdown photo features yet another defensive lineman (honestly the 90s don't give me a bunch of options). A 1999 All-SEC pick, Kendrick Clancy played two seasons with the Rebels and was a team captain. He is in his 11th season in the NFL and is currently with the reigning Super Bowl champs, the New Orleans Saints.



If you have a suggestion for a favorite player, play or something a little more creative you would like to see featured in the countdown, leave a comment below or shoot me an e-mail at desnowde@olemiss.edu.

Countdown To Kickoff: 97 Days

The run of defensive lineman continues with today's entry, former defensive end Stacy Wilson. A Tupelo, Miss. native, Wilson played four seasons with the Rebels and totaled 68 tackles and two sacks as a senior in 1994.

Countdown To Kickoff: 98 Days

Today's countdown entry highlights former All-American defensive tackle Peria Jerry. A first-team selection by the AP as a senior, Jerry helped the Rebels rack up a school-record 11 sacks against Mississippi State in the 2008 Egg Bowl.

Great Scott

Most people know Rodney Scott for what he did in last year's Auburn game. And rightfully so. His split-second judgment probably spared Tiger Zac Etheridge from paralysis and earned Scott nominations for the soon-to-be-announced SEC Sportsmanship Award. Rodney is a great kid. He is also a great running back, and was recently featured in the Gainesville Sun.

gatorsports.com: Rebel Reinforcement

Spanning the Globe

Whatever happened to Derrick Allen? What is Todd Abernethy up to these days? I wonder where "Fear the Beard" is now?

I'm sure there are many fans out there thinking like me. You wonder what happens to some of our most beloved Rebels after their playing days are over. Well, I spent the last couple of days doing some research on all the former Ole Miss basketball players who are still living out their hoop dreams. The results literally span the globe. There are former Rebels dotted across the world, from Germany to the Dominican Republic, Portugal to Puerto Rico.

Check out our story on the main site (OleMissSports.com) for a full listing of where former Rebels are playing basketball these days. On June 24, we hope to add one more to the list when Terrico White gets selected in the 2010 NBA Draft.

Grove Among Greatest Traditions

As we have noted in our media guides every year, The Grove is on everyone's list of top college football traditions. This week, Sporting News writers Dave Curtis and Matt Hayes weighed in with their top 10 traditions, and Ole Miss was one of five schools to make both of their lists, including LSU, Texas A&M, Ohio State and Colorado. As Hayes said, The Grove: Two words are enough. There are few places like it in college football. It's more than tailgating; it's a religious experience of food and friends and socializing.

Wallace On Fast Track To Replace Holmes

Former Ole Miss wide receiver Mike Wallace is on the fast track to replacing Santonio Holmes as the Steelers primary deep threat, according to Byron Leftwich, who is running the first-team offense while Ben Roethlisberger is absent. Leftwich said he loves Wallace's speed and says very few defenders will be faster than Wallace.

Click here to read the entire story.

Countdown To Kickoff: 99 Days

Today's countdown features former Rebel defensive end Josh Cooper. The 2004 Cotton Bowl Defensive MVP played four seasons with the Rebels before spending three seasons in the NFL with the 49ers and the Saints.

Countdown To Kickoff: 100 Days

Back by popular demand (I had at least two people tell me they liked it), OleMissSportsBlog.com will mark the number of days until kickoff of the 2010 Ole Miss football season with a photo.

Today it is officially 100 days until kickoff. Let the dog days of summer begin.

Snead Talks NFL, Ole Miss

Former Ole Miss quarterback Jevan Snead joined Sports Radio 610 in Houston, Texas today to chat about life in the NFL so far and his time at Ole Miss.

Mackey Oxford Bound

Nathan Stanley and Raymond Cotton competed successfully throughout spring drills, but the Ole Miss QB race is about to get a little more interesting as JUCO signee Randall Mackey arrives on campus next week. Mackey recently received his associate’s degree in liberal arts from East Mississippi Community College (see photo below), and the Bastrop Daily Enterprise ran a Q&A this week with the excited future Rebel.

Mackey's next stop: Ole Miss

A Hall Of Famer

Mahesh Bhupathi, the greatest player in Ole Miss men's tennis history, will be inducted into the ITA Men's Tennis Collegiate Hall of Fame Wednesday night at the NCAA Championships in Athens, Ga.

While at Ole Miss, Bhupathi led the Rebels to the NCAA team finals in 1995. He became the first Rebel tennis player to win an NCAA title when he teamed with Ali Hamadeh to capture the Doubles Championship in 1995 and ended the year as the No. 1 doubles team in the nation. In addition, Bhupathi was an All-American, 1994 ITA Rookie of the Year, 1995 SEC Singles Champion and SEC Player of the Year.

Since turning pro in the summer of 1995, Bhupathi has won all four slams with 11 total grand slam titles.

Head coach Billy Chadwick will accept the honor on Bhupathi's behalf, as the former Rebel is in Paris competing in the French Open.


Bhupathi (left) pictured with Ali Hamadeh after capturing the 1995 NCAA Doubles Championship.

Big Brad Filling Big Mike's Big Shoes

Bradley Sowell probably won't have a movie made about his life, and when he signed with Ole Miss, it didn't come with the same ballyhoo as when Michael Oher inked with the Rebels. Sowell's career in the Red and Blue got off to a bit of a slow start, but after a strong finish to 2009 and an excellent spring that saw him earn Most Improved Offensive Player honors, Big Brad is ready for big things. His hometown paper had a nice feature on Sowell in Monday's paper.

desototimestribune.com: Hernando Rebel proves critics wrong

Powe Preseason Hype Continues

I've already started my daily patrol of magazine stands desperately seeking the 2010 college football previews. Athlon and Lindy's officially kick off my gridiron excitement this time of year, and while I haven't seen them yet, I have received emails from some other media outlets with their preseason award winners. A BIG common denominator on these lists is our own massive tackle Jerrell Powe. You probably saw him earn All-America honors from NationalChamps.net and Phil Steele and the latest list is courtesy of The Kickoff, who named Powe to their second team this week.

Here is the complete Kickoff All-America team in a PDF. The magazine will hit the newsstands nationwide in mid-June.

Enrique Enspired

The Rebel backfield is a crowded one that has a number of players willing and able to contribute. Among that group is junior Enrique Davis, who is eyeing that breakout season so many have anticipated since his highly touted arrival on campus. Back home for his younger brother's high school graduation, Davis spoke with his hometown newspaper about his rising confidence after a productive spring.

chipleypaper.com: Rebels' running back Davis ready to make a stand

Pomeranz Talks To MLB Network

Junior southpaw Drew Pomeranz took some time today to visit with the MLB Network as the outlet for news from around Major League Baseball sent Trenni Kusnierek to Oxford to chat with the projected top 10 pick.

Pomeranz spent some time with Kusnierek and the crew talking about his time in Oxford, growing up dreaming about pitching in the big leagues and the prospects of that dream coming true in the next month. He demonstrated some pitches and also just had fun hanging with his teammates at practice throughout the afternoon.

The piece will air on the MLB Network closer to draft time.

Major League Rebels

Monday night the Memphis Redbirds were in action with former Ole Miss righty Lance Lynn on the mound. See picture. That got me thinking about what the rest of the former diamond Rebs were doing in their respective leagues so here it is.

Major League

Chris Coghlan (Florida Marlins) - .214 AVG, 27 hits, 126 ABs, 2 HRs, 10 RBI, .272 OBP, .270 SLG, .542 OPS

Seth Smith (Colorado Rockies) - .262 AVG, 5 HRs, 15 RBI, 22 hits, 84 ABs .319 OBP, .524 SLG, .842 OPS

AAA

T.J. Beam (Reno Aces, Arizona Diamondbacks) - 0-2, 7.27 ERA, 10 SO, 9 BB, 17.1 IP, .318 OPPAVG

Zack Cozart (Louisville Bats, Cincinnati Reds) - .270 AVG, 5 HR, 18 RBI, 38 hits, 141 ABs, .352 OBP, .475 SLG, .827 OPS

Lance Lynn (Memphis Redbirds, St. Louis Cardinals) - 2-2, 3.26 ERA, 31 SO, 21 BBs, 38.2 IP, .200 OPPAVG

Matt Maloney (Louisville Bats, Cincinnati Reds) - 3-1, 2.67 ERA, 41 SO, 7 BB, 33.2 IP, .240 OPPAVG

Matt Tolbert (Rochester Red Wings, Minnesota Twins) - .232 AVG, 1 HRs, 5 RBI, 26 hits, 112 ABs, .283 OBP, .348 SLG, .632 OPS

AA

Justin Henry (Erie SeaWolves, Detroit Tigers) - .224 AVG, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 17 hits, 76 ABs, .298 OBP, .355 SLG, .653 OPS

Alex Presley (Altoona Curve, Pittsburgh Pirates) - .371 AVG, 2 HR, 21 RBI, 46 hits, 124 ABs, .415 OBP, .508 SLG, .923 OPS

Cody Satterwhite (7-day DL - Erie SeaWolves, Detroit Tigers)

A

Nathan Baker (West Virginia Power, Pittsburgh Pirates) - 2-3, 3.78 ERA, 25 SO, 8 BBs, 33.1 IP, .248 OPPAVG

Brett Basham (Fort Wayne TinCaps, San Diego Padres) - .000 AVG, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 hits, 3 ABs, .000 OBP, .000 SLG, .000 OPS

Evan Button (Yakima Bears, Arizona Diamondbacks) - No ABs

Michael Guerrero (Vermont Lake Monsters, Washington Nationals) - .167 AVG, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 1 hits, 6 ABs, .286 OBP, .167 SLG, .452 OPS

Jordan Henry (Kinston Indians, Cleveland Indians) - .364 AVG, 0 HR, 7 RBI, 22 hits, 60 ABs, .493 OBP, .400 SLG, .893 OPS

Phillip Irwin (West Virginia Power, Pittsburgh Pirates) - 1-0, 1.80 ERA, 13 SO, 6 BBs, 15.0 IP, .208 OPPAVG

Cody Overbeck (Clearwater Threshers, Philadelphia Phillies) - .343 AVG, 9 HR, 29 RBI, 46 hits, 134 ABs, .409 OBP, .664 SLG, 1.074 OPS

Craig Rodriguez (DL - Burlington Bees, Kansas City Royals)
2009 season: 0-0, 3.00 ERA, 7 SO, 4 BBs, 6.0 IP, .304 OPPAVG

Independent

Stephen Head (Southern Illinois Miners) - Season begins today. Here is a video of Head talking about playing there. (Skip to the 1:13 mark)

Making Her Mark

Former Ole Miss soccer star Danielle Johnson continues to prove her worth on the pitch as a starting defender for the Women's Professional Soccer defending champion Sky Blue FC.

After making the team out of training camp, the four-time All-SEC pick worked her way into the Sky Blue's starting lineup, making four starts in five contests so far. Rebel fans should continue to expect big things from one of the all-time great Ole Miss players, who is an even better person.

And here is a recent shot of Dee guarding Brazilian sensation Marta (FC Gold Pride), generally regarded as the world's best female soccer player:

Photo by Howard C. Smith, isiphotos.com

Skins Sign Shay

Within two days of the NFL Draft's end, record-setting Rebel wideout Shay Hodge was scooped up by San Francisco. Hodge did not make the 49ers roster, but it didn't take long for him to be grabbed by Washington. Shay is the lone Rebel on the current Redskin roster and has a chance to be the 17th former Ole Miss player all-time to suit up for the Skins, most recently Mike Espy and Todd Wade in 2006-07. Notable on that list is former UM Chancellor Robert Khayat, who kicked in the nation's capital 1960-63 and earned Pro Bowl honors in '61.

Get To Know Martin Kirui

If you're an Ole Miss fan, then you probably know about Barnabas Kirui. The Kenyan is the first two-time SEC Cross Country Champion in school history, an SEC Runner of the Year and an NCAA champion in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. You might not be familiar with Barnabas' brother Martin yet, but after capturing an SEC title in the 3,000-meter steeplechase this weekend, you'll probably be hearing more and more about him. In fact, the brothers Kirui finished one-two in Saturday's final. Martin is in his first year at Ole Miss after transferring from Southwest Mississippi Community College. One of his best performances came at last month's Drake Relays, where he won the 3000 meter steeplechase with the second-fastest time in school history. Check out an interview with the budding Rebel star following that first-place run in Iowa.

Track and Field Videos on Flotrack

Hand Remembered

Ole Miss is quickly developing a reputation as Defensive Line U. Greg Hardy, Kentrell Lockett and others have helped form a fearsome line that has put the Rebels routinely near the top of the NCAA in TFLs. However, long before Peria Jerry and Jerrell Powe were disruptive forces, another set of massive tackles dominated the line of scrimmage. A pair of 300-pounders named Norman Hand and Tim Bowens had ruled the Mississippi JUCO ranks for Itawamba in the early 90s and recreated that magic in Oxford in 1993. Half of that tandem left us Friday, as Hand passed away in his hometown of Walterboro, S.C. After two great seasons in the Red and Blue, Hand went on to a successful 10-year NFL career. However, Norman was more than just an intimidating nose tackle, as the Seattle Times wrote about in this 2003 article while he was a member of the Seahawks. Perhaps Hand's best pro years were in a New Orleans Saints uniform, and the Times Picayune paid its tribute to the great Rebel today.

New Orleans Saints' Norman Hand remembered as 'one of the good guys'

Retrospective: Norman Hand was driving force for New Orleans Saints

Baseball Bracketology

Only two weeks remain in the regular season, and according to the college baseball experts, the Rebels are in the driver's seat to host an NCAA Regional. Of the notable bracketologists on the web, only thecollegebaseballblog.com has Ole Miss hitting the road, predicting a trip to Miami. Here are some sites that have the Rebels staying in Oxford and who they expect to join us.
ESPN.com: Arizona, Southern Miss, Ball State
Rivals.com: Oklahoma, Southern Miss, Wright State
SEBaseball: Oklahoma, Illinois State, Southeastern Louisiana

The Rebels have a chance to improve their NCAA status this weekend at Alabama. Catch webcasts of games one and three on RebelVision, while game two is televised on ESPN2.

Nutt Speaks To Women's Tennis Team

The Ole Miss women's tennis team got a treat Tuesday morning at practice as head football coach Houston Nutt dropped by to speak to the team. The Rebels are making final preparations before leaving Wednesday for Atlanta and the NCAA first and second rounds.

The Rebels, pictured here with Nutt, open play against UC Irvine Friday at 9 a.m. at the Bill Moore Tennis Center on the campus of Georgia Tech.

Massie Making a Name

After emerging in the second half of last season, Bobby Massie continued his maturation in the spring and could be in line for a breakout season. Most fans knew about Bobby as a big time recruit out of Virginia, and now he is "making a name in the SEC" according to ESPN.com blogger Chris Low, who wrote:
Having moved in as a starter at right tackle last season as a true freshman, Massie returns as the anchor of the Rebels’ offensive line. He’ll be the guy they run behind in key situations, and he’s also a solid pass protector.

Looking at the NBA Draft

With Rebel sophomore Terrico White tabbed by many as a potential first-round pick in the NBA Draft (June 24), he could become one of the highest drafted players in Ole Miss hoops history.

Here’s a look at some of the highest drafted Rebels in the history of the NBA Draft.

Player	Overall pick	Round	Team	Year
Gerald Glass	20	1st	Minnesota	1990
John Stroud	27	2nd	Houston	1980
Ansu Sesay	30	2nd	Dallas	1998
Denver Brackeen	37	5th	New York	1955
Justin Reed	40	2nd	Boston	2004
Elston Turner	43	2nd	Dallas	1981
Joe Gibbon	69	9th	Boston	1957
Cob Jarvis	71	8th	New York	1954
Carlos Clark	92	4th	Boston	1983
Roger Stieg	95	5th	Indiana	1983

NOTE: The NBA Draft has consisted of only two rounds since 1989.

Rebels In ESPN The Magazine

ESPN The Magazine and Drew Pomeranz have shared some bad luck. The publication wanted to do a feature on the Rebel ace and came down to Oxford for his Friday night start against LSU. The game was a rainout, and due to travel plans, the writer could not stay for Drew's Saturday start, which was an Ole Miss win. Fortunately, photographer Pouya Dianat was able to stick around and produced the awesome photo below that appeared in the May 17 edition of ESPN The Magazine. The writer was eventually able to make a second trip to Oxford, and of course, it would be Drew's first loss of the year, in Friday's setback to Arkansas. Nonetheless, the article should be running soon.

Good Read On Stanley

Check out the college football home page of AOL Sports' Fanhouse.com this evening and headlining is Rebel QB Nathan Stanley. Before heading home to Oklahoma for a few weeks before first summer term, Stanley took time out for a quick call with writer Jim Henry Friday morning about the confidence he gained this spring.

Rebels' Stanley Ready for Chance That Comes Early

Lynn Earns First Win For Memphis

Former Rebel hurler Lance Lynn picked up his first triple-A win Friday for the Memphis Redbirds. The righthander allowed six hits, no runs, one walk, struck out eight and assisted on a double play in the victory. This season, Lynn boasts a 3.58 ERA and a 1-2 record in six starts for Memphis and recently flirted with a no-hitter, keeping Oklahoma City at bay until the seventh inning before taking a no decision. (AP photo below)

Grandy Early Favorite For Returner Award

The College Football Performance Awards recently announced the preseason favorites for their individual position awards, and our own Jesse Grandy was listed among the candidates for top kickoff returner. CFPA honorees are chosen based upon objective scientific rankings of the extent to which individual players increase the overall effectiveness of their teams. Last year, Dexter McCluster was the National Running Back Award winner, and if the returner of the year trophy is anything like the running back award, Grandy may need to pack some lbs on that 165-pound frame. McCluster's trophy, which he received at this year's Grove Bowl, was a 22-inch crystal tower with an 8-inch crystal football on top and weighed more than the Stanley Cup. Photo courtesy of Joey Brent.

Traveling Grove

Ole Miss is known for its tailgating at football games in The Grove. The women's golf team has taken to its own form of tailgating with the "Traveling Grove." Golfweek's Beth Ann Baldry featured it in Friday's wrap-up of the NCAA Central Regional. Click here to read what she had to say.

Powe Picks Up Preseason Notoriety

College football season is still four months away, but the media outlets have already begun announcing their preseason all-star teams. First on the scene is NationalChamps.net, who released their All-America teams earlier this week. Honorable Mention on the defensive line is our own Jerrell Powe. The Rebels' starting nose tackle was also recently named to the preliminary watch list for the 2010 Rotary Lombardi Award, which honors the nation's top lineman, offensive or defensive.

Maisel Notes Vaught's Birthday

Yesterday was the birthday of the late legendary Ole Miss coach Johnny Vaught, and on the ESPN.com College Football Nation Blog, Ivan Maisel made mention of the Rebel great and threw out some interesting figures on the financial growth in college athletics, writing:

Today is the 101st anniversary of Hall of Fame coach Johnny Vaught’s birth. Here’s a few numbers from his 1971 autobiography, Rebel Coach. University budget: $26 million. Ole Miss athletic budget: $982,000. Vaught salary: $28,500. And here is their counterpart today: The 2009-10 university budget: $1.58 billion (60 times greater). The 2008-09 athletic budget: $34.4 million. (34 times greater). Houston Nutt’s 2009 salary: $2.5 million (98 times greater).

Pomz No. 2 Overall Pick?

If you've visited Yahoo's MLB front page today, you probably noticed a Rebel in the lead story. The site is breaking down the 2010 Draft, and the analysts for both Yahoo and Rivals project Ole Miss ace Drew Pomeranz as the No. 2 overall selection to Pittsburgh. It would be the highest draft spot by a Rebel in our storied history. Several other bloggers -- MLBBonusBaby, 5 Tool Talk and Camden Depot -- also have Drew going second, while the rest of the know-it-alls have him at least in the top seven picks. All of this is to say expect Pomz to get paid royally.

The MLB First-Year Player Draft is June 7-9 in Secaucus, N.J.

Sunday Baseball Set For RebelVision, NOT Television

Despite conflicting reports floating around Twitter, Sunday's game three of the Ole Miss-Arkansas series will NOT be televised. It will however be available via RebelVision's outstanding webcasts. If you are not a subscriber, you're missing out on some truly high quality work from the folks at Ole Miss Sports Productions, particularly when you compare it to what other schools are doing for their live baseball streams. Sunday's first pitch is 1:30 p.m., and you can click here to watch it.

The first two games of the series will indeed be televised on ESPNU, and game times are 7 p.m. for both Friday and Saturday. Check out our weekend preview on OleMissSports.com.

Cobb, Billings Inducted Into Local Hall Of Fame

Former Ole Miss linebacker Shawn Cobb and fullback Darron Billings were recently inducted into the Jackson-Madison County (Tenn.) Sports Hall of Fame, which celebrated its 25th anniversary with the April 15 ceremony. Billings played three seasons for Ole Miss and was a co-captain in 1991. Cobb is only of only three Rebels in the modern era to lead the team in tackles in three seasons (1988-90). The 1990 co-captain still ranks seventh on the career tackles list with 343 stops. Congratulations Darron and Shawn!



Ole Miss great Eddie Crawford joins Shawn and Darron in the second picture. Our own Senior Associate AD Derek Horne attended the festivities and provided these photos.

Rebels Follow NFL Dreams

A total of 12 Rebels from last year's team have already reached the next level, either by draft or free agent contract, and a few more are still working towards that goal. OL Reid Neely (AP photo below) and DL Marcus Tillman were invited to attend the St. Louis Rams Rookie Mini-Camp over the weekend, in hopes of leaving with a free-agent deal. Neither were immediately signed (see the Rams' official site for those that were), but the workouts with other teams continue. Other 09 Rebs trying out for NFL teams include Daverin Geralds, Preston Powers and Joshua Shene.

New Member Of Ole Miss Baseball Family

Ole Miss Baseball welcomed a new addition to the family on Tuesday, May 4, with the birth of Quinn Carolina Francis.

Assistant coach Rob Francis and his wife, Anne, welcomed the little girl into the world at 11:09 a.m. this morning. The healthy tyke weighed in at 8 pounds, 3 ounces and measured 20 inches in length.

Congrats to Coach Francis and Anne! Hotty Toddy!

Niners Lock Up Willis

FOX Sports' Jay Glazer tweeted earlier today that former Rebel stud Patrick Willis has agreed with the 49ers on a five-year contract extension worth $50 million. In addition to the two years already remaining on his existing deal, the two-time All-Pro linebacker is now property of San Fran through the 2016 season. Willis is the most decorated defensive player in Rebel history and has made the Pro Bowl every year of his pro career.

Check out a cool video tribute to Willis at 49ers.com.

Low's Spring Eval

ESPN Blogger Chris Low is running through his spring wrap-ups of the SEC, and for the Rebels, he noted the defensive dominance up front, the rise of the sophomore class and the emergence of Enrique Davis as some of the key factors heading into the fall. Here is the link.

ESPN.com: Ole Miss Spring Wrap

Baseball Intro Songs

What a great two weeks of baseball! The Rebels are tied for the SEC West lead and have the co-leaders coming to town this weekend for a three game series. We get tons of request at Ole Miss Sports Marketing for the names of the songs that our baseball players walk out to. I have compiled a list of the songs as of May 3, and I thought I would share.

Tim Ferguson- "Here I come" by Fergie
Kevin Mort –"California Love" by Notorious BIG
Matt Smith-"Tuck that Ice in" by Young Joc
Matt Snyder-"Bawitdaba" by Kid Rock
Mike Snyder-"Deliverence" by Bubba Sparks
David Phillips-"Tapp" by 3OH!3
Zach Miller-"Good Morning" by Chamillionare
Alex Yarbrough-"All the things that I have done" by The Killers
Taylor Hightower- "Down" by Stone Temple Pilots
Taylor Hashman- "Magic Stick" by 50 cent
Cliff Vaughn-"All the way turnt up" by Roscoe, Soulja Boy
Miles Hamblin-"Bring it on" by Kevin Fowler
Tanner Mathis-"All I do is win" by D.J. Khaled


Drew Pomeranz-"Welcome Home" by Coheed and Cambria
Aaron Barrett- "Until I Collapse" by Eminem
David Goforth-"Lights Out" by P.O.D.
Trent Rothlin-"Coming Undone" by Korn
Rory Mckean-"Rory 2 Remix" by Nonfiction
Brett Huber-"Drops Tops" by Phat Pat
Matt Crouse-"Phenomenon" by thousand foot crutch
Eric Callender-"Pimp Juice" by Nelly
Matt Tracy-"Cant Stop" by Red Hot Chili Peppers

My Favorite is:


If you are one of the best leadoff hitters in the conference then you can come out to anything you want, but if your nickname is Ferg then you have to come out to Fergie!

Rookie Camps In Session

NFL rookie mini-camps kicked off this week, and former Rebel Jevan Snead is one of the intriguing stories from the Buccaneers' camp, as reported by the Associated Press, St. Petersburg Times and the Pewter Report. Also check out some interesting mini-camp coverage on Dexter McCluster, John Jerry, Kendrick Lewis and Greg Hardy, and a few pics of our ex-Rebs in their new digs (courtesy of Cliff Welch, David Eulitt, the Miami Dolphins and the Tennessee Titans, respectively).






Also, if you didn't see it earlier today on the official site, two more Rebels are NFL bound.

Rogers Tribute

Our department's long-time leader Langston Rogers stepped down as of Friday, and we had quite a celebration here Saturday in the southzone to honor him. A couple hundred friends, family, media and staff -- current and former -- were on hand, most notably Coach Billy Brewer, Coach Boo Ferriss, SEC Associate Commissioner Charles Bloom, former Chancellor Robert Khayat and current Chancellor Dan Jones to name a few. The media has given Langston its sendoff, and here are a few of the tributes.

Clarion-Ledger: Rogers' legacy: loyalty, passion

Daily Journal: LANGSTON ROGERS: 'All-American performer'

Commercial Appeal: Ole Miss athletic media relations chief has been true to his school for 29 years

Knoxville News Blog: Langston Rogers