Hugh Kellenberger

The Clarion-Ledger

OXFORD – Rebel the Black Bear may be Ole Miss' mascot, but the school would just as soon have him not be in the spotlight Saturday.

At the end of each edition of ESPN's "College GameDay," which will broadcast live from the Grove on Saturday in advance of No. 11 Ole Miss' game against No. 3 Alabama, analyst Lee Corso makes his pick for the big game. A large percentage of the time that includes the head of the team's mascot.

Not so fast. This week, if asked, Ole Miss plans to give Corso the team's helmet.

"That's what our team wears," athletic director Ross Bjork said. "It has our logo on it, and Rebel's head doesn't. We wanted our logo and that brand to be out there."

That does not mean Corso will necessarily be putting on a navy blue helmet (or the powder blue retro version worn last week against Memphis). He could pick Alabama, a six-point favorite, or go in his own direction.

"Corso is an active participant in his picks segment and usually has a very specific idea of how he wants it to play out," ESPN spokesperson Keri Potts said. "If he wants the school's gear, he'll work with them to get that but often has other ways of making his selection (as many instances indicate) without official school issued items."

In five weeks of the 2014 college football season, Corso has three times put on the mascot head: a North Dakota State Bison, an Oregon Duck and a South Carolina Gamecock. In two of those cases, he also used a live animal, and he hung out on set with the Duck mascot.

But Bjork strikes a comparison with the two times Corso has picked Florida State. In Week 1 he put on a helmet, and he used a jersey and band hat to make his pick in week 4.

"He didn't put on the head dress, which to me was intentional," Bjork said.

But the Florida State Seminole is a student who wears traditional Native American clothing and face paint. Rebel the Black Bear usually wears the team's jersey. It's an apples and oranges comparison, but one that speaks to the Ole Miss fan base's tenuous relationship with Rebel.

It's been 11 years since Colonel Reb was removed as Ole Miss' official mascot, and Rebel is in his fourth season now. But he remains less than a fan favorite, and he's most visible on game days in areas where there are large groups of children.

It's a slow-play. As those younger fans grow up, they'll only know an Ole Miss with Rebel as the mascot and be much more likely to accept him. It may take a generation or two, but it has a shot at working.

Just not in time for Saturday.

Contact Hugh Kellenberger at (601) 961-7291 or hkellenber@clarionledger.com. Follow @HKellenbergerCL on Twitter.