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re: Why Does Everyone Think Ole Miss Fans Are Rich?
Posted on 1/26/14 at 3:50 pm to Rebellious
Posted on 1/26/14 at 3:50 pm to Rebellious
quote:
the coeds are the most beautiful in the country
Nope. Arizona State holds that title. And it's not even close.
0
Posted on 1/26/14 at 3:50 pm to tigerbait2010
quote:
Who are some of Ole Miss' wealthiest alumni?
Jim Barksdale, founder of Netscape, is probably the wealthiest. Billionaire many times over whose name is on the Honors College.
Dickie Scruggs was probably the richest before he landed in prison--tobacco lawyer of Hollywood fame.
I am sure Shep Smith of Fox News is loaded, too, but certainly not in the billionaire class.
But most Ole Miss alums are not wealthy, just well-off.
Posted on 1/26/14 at 3:57 pm to Chronic
A more important question is why are you so mad?
Posted on 1/26/14 at 3:59 pm to DCRebel
Like you could help him out with being mad..
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:01 pm to Chronic
One final point. The OP asked why everyone thinks Ole Miss FANS are rich, not why everyone thinks its students and alumni are rich.
One reason for that might be that Ole Miss does not have the "blue-collar" following in Mississippi that most SEC teams have in their states (which Alabama is most famous for, although it applies to most SEC schools).
Ole Miss had such a following in the Vaught era, but lost it after that and a recent survey indicated that both MSU and USM, even, have more fans in Mississippi than Ole Miss does--partly a reflection of Ole Miss being seen in the state as a school for the social elite, to which the average Joe does not belong.
If it ever started to achieve the sort of success it did in the Vaught era, that "blue collar" support in Mississippi would probably re-materialize, but not until then.....
So the Ole Miss fan base is heavily skewed towards the college-educated in a way that is not the case at most SEC schools...which explains the perception asked about.
One reason for that might be that Ole Miss does not have the "blue-collar" following in Mississippi that most SEC teams have in their states (which Alabama is most famous for, although it applies to most SEC schools).
Ole Miss had such a following in the Vaught era, but lost it after that and a recent survey indicated that both MSU and USM, even, have more fans in Mississippi than Ole Miss does--partly a reflection of Ole Miss being seen in the state as a school for the social elite, to which the average Joe does not belong.
If it ever started to achieve the sort of success it did in the Vaught era, that "blue collar" support in Mississippi would probably re-materialize, but not until then.....
So the Ole Miss fan base is heavily skewed towards the college-educated in a way that is not the case at most SEC schools...which explains the perception asked about.
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:03 pm to Rebellious
quote:
OK, here is the deal.
More than half the students at Ole Miss are not from Mississippi, an EXTREMELY high percentage for any state university, especially one in the South.
That actually isn't the deal. More than 62 percent of students at Ole Miss are from Mississippi.
While the campus can certainly be lauded as "attractive," many of the school's out-of-state 18-year-olds do not attend the school because of it's tree-lined streets; rather, they do attend Old MIss because they are unable to gain admission to their home states' universities. That doesn't have to be a knock against The University of Mississippi; it can be viewed as a win/win situation for both parties (students and the university). Who doesn't like diversity?
In terms of drawing from Mississippi's elite … Since fewer than 64% of Mississippi HS graduates attend college, it stands to reason that many of those who are able and/or willing to seek a college degree--at each one of the state's institutions of higher education (not just OM)--are likely among "Mississippi's elite" (whatever your definition is of that label [I assume you're referring to SES]).
So while the student bodies at OM and MSU may be more wealthy than the average Mississippian, they are not, "in fact," skewed towards kids from families of any higher income levels than student bodies in other states. I think this myth (truth be told, I wasn't aware of the "Ole Miss fans are rich" meme) is much more the result of what wmr said earlier: "... the fact that it [OM/Missississippi] is surrounded by such extreme poverty ... the idea of 'class' distinction becomes more important." It appears that's the case for some Mississippi folks, anyway.
Interesting conversation.
This post was edited on 1/26/14 at 4:19 pm
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:04 pm to Rebellious
quote:
One reason for that might be that Ole Miss does not have the "blue-collar" following in Mississippi that most SEC teams have in their states
I don't buy that one bit.
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:05 pm to Rebellious
quote:
One reason for that might be that Ole Miss does not have the "blue-collar" following in Mississippi that most SEC teams have in their states (which Alabama is most famous for, although it applies to most SEC schools)
MY GOD you're killing me
Every skank in North Mississippi that can identify a rebel flag is a self-proclaimed Ole Miss fan. . All SEC schools have them.
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:06 pm to Crimson Legend
quote:
Also, I agree with the above statement that Ole Miss is NOT a weak academic institution. It is a solid school for what they want to be. Measurements like US News typically do not favor them because of lower endowments, and less emphasis on research. But unlike many more prestigious schools, most classes outside of core curriculum are taught by professors and not graduate assistants. For what Ole Miss wants to be, I think it is very successful.
All of this
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:07 pm to I Ham That I Ham
quote:
I don't buy that one bit.
It's the truth
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:08 pm to OBReb6
quote:
It's the truth
That changed my mind.
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:09 pm to REG861
quote:
There may be some overlap here, but I'd also add another sub-category: girls with no interest in any sort of legitimate career who go to OM for the sole purpose of meeting their husband so they can play Susie Homemaker as soon as possible.
also all of this
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:09 pm to I Ham That I Ham
Ok
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:10 pm to UMRealist
That is true..
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:17 pm to Hardy_Har
Vandy's endowment compared to Texas AM should be taken in context. AM's endowment is shared by the entire AM system consisting of many satellite schools and more than 100k students. Vandy's endowment is for the benefit of only 6500 students.
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:20 pm to Chronic
Ole Miss big $$ = MS doctors, attorneys, & 50,000 "millionaires"
This post was edited on 1/26/14 at 4:27 pm
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:20 pm to EKG
quote:
That actually isn't the deal. More than 62 percent of students at Ole Miss hail from Mississippi
Not sure where you are getting that info, but I have mine directly from the Administration. Maybe the discrepancy is due to the fact that the OM medical school and some other professional schools have enrollments that are almost 100% from Mississippi....but less than half the undergraduate students at Ole Miss are from Mississippi. That is just a fact.
To claim that the only reason out-of-state students attend Ole Miss is because they did not get into the state universities in their own states does not have any factual basis. It may be true of some of them, but that is like saying that the only reason any out-of-state student attends A&M and majors in engineering is because they couldn't get in to MIT or Caltech or Stanford.
Silly.
All state universities get some academically high-achieving students who could have gone to more prestigious schools, but who don't, for one reason or another (social life, geographic location, etc.)
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:24 pm to Rebellious
quote:
Not sure where you are getting that info
From The University of Mississippi: About UM: Facts
I didn't claim admissions standards was the "only" reason out-of-state students attend Ole Miss; I said it was a reason that many do.
It is.
Absolutely, state universities can (and do) attract high-achieving students. I don't think anyone would disagree.
This post was edited on 1/26/14 at 4:28 pm
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:31 pm to morriscat2
quote:
Vandy's endowment is for the benefit of only 6500 students.
Your 6,000 graduate students don't count as students?
Posted on 1/26/14 at 4:32 pm to EKG
quote:
From The University of Mississippi: About UM: Facts
Right. If you read the whole paragraph, you see that that percentage includes the Medical Center, which has 2700+ students--about 13% of the total university enrollment--and almost all of those are from Mississippi.
So we were both right.
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