Ole Miss Set to Open 2021 Season in Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game vs. Louisville
The offseason is here, and there’s no doubt Rebel Nation is already counting down the days until football returns again in the fall. Luckily for eager Ole Miss fans, the Rebels will be a part of the headlining act as the 2021 college football season gets started with the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game.
The Rebels, who rank in the Top 25 in several early preseason polls, will face the Louisville Cardinals in the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta in a Monday evening showdown set for Sept. 6th, 2021.
Lane Kiffin and his ball club are one of four teams that will be a part of the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game series. Prior to the Ole Miss vs. Louisville contest Monday, fans can see the reigning national champion Alabama Crimson Tide take on the No. 18 Miami Hurricanes on Saturday, September 4.
With 3️⃣ top 25 teams and 4️⃣ Heisman hopefuls, we are looking forward to starting the 2021 season with a bang.@CanesFootball v @AlabamaFTBL @UofLFootball v @OleMissFB#CFAKickoff pic.twitter.com/Z2JlKbK0Mu
— Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (@CFAPeachBowl) January 15, 2021
Three of the four teams are ranked in the Sporting News’ way-too-early preseason Top 25: Alabama is ranked No. 1, Miami No. 18 and Ole Miss No. 21 in the outlet’s poll.
The Rebels will open the 2021 season coming off a 5-5 season. However, 2020 was far from dull as Kiffin’s team can boast four SEC victories, a record-setting offense that put up the most points on the National Champs (48), the nation’s 19th-best recruiting class and the school’s first bowl appearance in five seasons, a win over No. 7 Indiana.
You can be sure this September the Lane Train will be ready to rock and roll into high gear, beginning in Atlanta on September 6!
Lee Ann Herring-Olvedo
Herring-Olvedo sees college football the way championship programs do—from inside the personnel room. Every evaluation, every roster move, every recruiting battle tells a bigger story about identity, culture, and how a program is built to win in December, not just July.
With more than 15 years covering the SEC and the national recruiting landscape, Herring-Olvedo has built a reputation as one of the sport’s most respected personnel-driven voices—blending film evaluation, roster construction, and long-term program vision through a true front-office lens. Her coverage of powerhouse brands like Ole Miss Rebels and Kentucky Wildcatshas consistently gone beyond headlines, focusing instead on the blueprint behind winning programs: development, fit, culture, and recruiting strategy.
That foundation was formed early at Brown University, where she worked in player personnel and recruiting while competing as a student-athlete. Inside those recruiting operations rooms, she learned how elite organizations are truly built—through relentless evaluation, relationship building, projection, and trust in the board. Those experiences shaped the way she studies the game today: part scout, part storyteller, part architect.
Her analysis and reporting have appeared across major platforms including ESPN, NFL coverage spaces, USA Today Sports, and Saturday Down South. She also brought her personnel-minded approach to the airwaves as an on-air analyst for the Wake Up 502 College Football Show on Big X Sports Radio 96.1, where she became known for combining film-room detail with a wider understanding of roster identity and program trajectory.
In 2025, covering the rise of Houston Cougars football under Willie Fritz reignited the part of the sport that first drew her into football—the culture, the edge, the belief that a roster can reshape an entire city. That inspiration led to the launch of Coogs 365 Sports, a platform built to cover Houston athletics through a true scouting and recruiting lens while connecting the emotion of the game to the heartbeat of H-Town.
Now, Herring-Olvedo returns to The Rebel Walk where with an even deeper perspective shaped by years inside recruiting circles, national SEC coverage, and hands-on evaluation experience. Her return brings a familiar voice back to Ole Miss coverage—but with an evolved lens rooted in roster architecture, player development, and the modern realities of building championship-caliber football in the NIL and portal era.
For Herring-Olvedo, recruiting has never been about stars beside a name. It is about identifying competitors, projecting growth, and building a locker room capable of sustaining success. Her philosophy mirrors the best front offices in football: stack traits, trust culture, and never stop building.
