Ole Miss Beats Kentucky, Secures NIL Victory Along the Way

The Ole Miss Rebels are winning on and off the field under coach Lane Kiffin.

OXFORD, Miss. -- The No. 14 Ole Miss Rebels are undefeated and feeling good following their nail-biting 22-19 victory over the No. 7 Kentucky Wildcats.

It was a big weekend for the Ole Miss football program and athletic department as a whole, as Ole Miss is not only 5-0 for the first time since 2014, but it has also officially reorganized its NIL efforts.

Sports Illustrated's Ross Dellenger recapped Ole Miss' monumental weekend.

In Oxford, the Lane Train is a humm’n - both on the field and off the field too (ahem, NIL).

On the jarring new era of college sports; on a raucous, (probably) hungover, brunch-boozing crowd; and on the 5-0 Portal Kings of college football https://t.co/qbYfYhmimm

— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) October 1, 2022

Essentially, Ole Miss is now, in a more organized fashion, able to pay its enrolled athletes via NIL. 

Prior to Saturday's contest, Ole Miss gathered athletic department administrators, coaches from nearly every sport on campus, and the school's biggest donors to announce a new NIL collective, The Grove Collective.

The goal of the newly established Grove Collective is to provide NIL deals to more than 250 Ole Miss athletes. To stay competitive with rival teams, collective officials have estimated they need to raise at least $7 million per year.

In attendance for the announcement was Ole Miss football coach Lane Kiffin, and the announcement was music to his ears as he has pursued a new NIL collective for months to give the Rebels a needed edge in recruitment. 

Kiffin got his NIL wish fulfilled and his first victory versus a top 10 opponent at Ole Miss all in one weekend.

"It was good timing," Kiffin told reporters after the game.

Kiffin was also happier with fan attendance on Saturday after publicly criticizing the Ole Miss faithful for a poor showing at home in Week 4.

"Keep doing it. We appreciate it," Kiffin said. 

Kiffin's criticism was heard, as Vaught-Hemingway Stadium was packed and rocking for all four quarters with over 64,800 fans in attendance.

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You can follow Ben King on Twitter at @BKing_2023.

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