1972 Ole Miss Rebels football team

The 1972 Ole Miss Rebels football team represented the University of Mississippi during the 1972 NCAA University Division football season. The Rebels were led by second-year head coach Billy Kinard and played their home games at Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Mississippi and Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium in Jackson. They competed as members of the Southeastern Conference, finishing tied for seventh with a record of 5–5 (2–5 SEC).

1972 Ole Miss Rebels football
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Record	5–5 (2–5 SEC)
Head coach	Billy Kinard (2nd season)
Home stadium	Hemingway Stadium (35,000) Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium (46,000)
Seasons ← 1971 1973 →

1972 Southeastern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 7 Alabama $	7	–	1	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
No. 5 Auburn	6	–	1	–	0			10	–	1	–	0
No. 11 LSU	4	–	1	–	1			9	–	2	–	1
No. 8 Tennessee	4	–	2	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
Georgia	4	–	3	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Florida	3	–	3	–	1			5	–	5	–	1
Ole Miss	2	–	5	–	0			5	–	5	–	0
Kentucky	2	–	5	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Mississippi State	1	–	6	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Vanderbilt	0	–	6	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

Ole Miss fielded its first integrated varsity football team in 1972, as did SEC rivals Georgia and LSU. This was ten years after James Meredith became the first African-American to attend the university.

This was the first of 11 consecutive seasons in which the Rebels did not play in a bowl.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 16	at Memphis State*	No. 19	Memphis Memorial Stadium Memphis, TN (rivalry)	W 34–29	51,174	[1]
September 23	at South Carolina*	No. 20	Carolina Stadium Columbia, SC	W 21–0	48,405	[2]
September 30	Southern Miss*	No. 17	Hemingway Stadium Oxford, MS	W 13–9	27,200	[3]
October 7	No. 17 Auburn	No. 18	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS (rivalry)	L 13–19	46,421	[4]
October 14	Georgia		Mississippi Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS	L 13–14	42,800	[5]
October 21	Florida		Hemingway Stadium Oxford, MS	L 0–16	35,250	[6]
October 28	at Vanderbilt		Dudley Field Nashville, TN (rivalry)	W 31–7	21,975	[7]
November 4	at No. 6 LSU		Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA (rivalry)	L 16–17	70,502	[8]
November 18	at No. 13 Tennessee		Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry)	L 0–17	70,527	[9]
November 25	Mississippi State		Hemingway Stadium Oxford, MS (Egg Bowl)	W 51–14	33,586	[10]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

^[11]

Roster

1972 Ole Miss Rebels football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class RB Greg Ainsworth RB Gene Allen WR Bill Barry OL Pete Boone OL Art Bressler OL John Gregory WR Gary Hall RB Doug Hamley RB Paul Hofer WR Bill Jordan RB Larry Kramer OL Don Leathers QB Bill Malouf OL Danny Mikul TE Larry Northam RB Jimmy Porter TE Butch Veazey QB 16 Norris Weese Jr RB Jim Winstead OL Darrell Cleghorn Fr	Defense Pos. # Name Class LB Bob Bailess DL Reggie Dill DB Mickey Fratesi DB Harry Harrison DL Bill May DL Mackey McKinzie DB Stan Moley LB Mel Richardson LB Stump Russell DL Jim Stuart DB Henry Walsh	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K Steve Lavinghouze	Head coach Billy Kinard Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "Ole Miss nips Memphis State". The Jackson Sun. September 17, 1972. Retrieved October 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "Ole Miss Rebs, State Bulldogs defeat foes". The Sunday Herald. September 24, 1972. Retrieved October 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Ole Miss takes tainted victory, 13–9". The Clarion-Ledger. October 1, 1972. Retrieved March 23, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Walls guides tough Tigers past Mississippi, 19–13". The Charlotte Observer. October 8, 1972. Retrieved October 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Georgia slips past Mississippi Rebels". The Daily Advertiser. October 15, 1972. Retrieved October 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Stingy Gators blank Rebels". The Tampa Tribune. October 22, 1972. Retrieved October 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Ole Miss collects first SEC victory". The Jackson Sun. October 29, 1972. Retrieved October 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "LSU whips Rebs on final play". Daily World. November 5, 1972. Retrieved October 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Vols vault into Bluebonnet". The Tennessean. November 19, 1972. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Ole Miss rolls over State 51–14". The Delta Democrat-Times. November 26, 1972. Retrieved October 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "1972 Ole Miss Rebels Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 22, 2023.