Sad news to share as Ole Miss has announced the passing of former head coach Billy Kinard over the weekend. He was 84.

Kinard took over the Ole Miss program following the first retirement of legendary Rebel coach John Vaught starting in 1971. Ole Miss achieved a high level of success in his first season, going 10-2 and advancing to the Peach Bowl that season. The Rebels went on to beat Georgia Tech 41-18 in that game. The team finished the season ranked No. 15 in the AP Poll in 1971. The Rebels then went 5-5 in 1972 and decided to bring back Vaught to take the job over from Kinard after a 1-2 start to the 1973 campaign.

Kinard holds the honor of being the first alumnus to be named Ole Miss head coach in school history. Kinard earned four letters for Ole Miss in football and two on the baseball team.

According to Ole Miss, funeral services for Coach Kinard will be at 2 p.m., Tuesday, July 3, at Grace Presbyterian Church, located at 5760 Gault Avenue, North in Fort Payne. The family will receive friends on Tuesday, July 3 at the church from 12-2 p.m. A private graveside service will be held at a later date.