‘He’s Got a Chance!’ Rebels' Lane Kiffin Confident in Former TE Jonathan Hess Competing in ‘The Bachelorette’

The Ole Miss Rebels and Lane Kiffin have a former player competing in the latest season of 'The Bachelorette.'

OXFORD, Miss. – The Ole Miss Rebels are busy preparing for their 2024 campaign with spring practices, but a former player has recently started a different type of competition. Former Ole Miss tight end Jonathan Hess is one of the 25 male contestants taking part in the newest season of ‘The Bachelorette.’

Hess played for the Rebels from 2018-22 and is now on Lane Kiffin’s staff as a recruiting assistant. Hess made a name for himself by starting the fire extinguisher tradition on the sidelines.

Midway his press conference on Tuesday, Kiffin took a break from football talk to express confidence in his former player.

“I feel like it’s kind of like the basketball tournament or the playoffs in football,” Kiffin told reporters. “I feel like if [Hess] can make it and get some momentum going and get past the beginning – to where people see a lot of him – then I think he’s got a chance because of his personality.”

While Kiffin is rooting for his assistant, he was adamant during his presser that he is not a fan of the program due to it being unrealistic.

“I’ve always kind of been annoyed by it,” Kiffin said. “I feel like the competition makes people act different. Because they’re like here’s 25 people and they all fall in love with the same guy. Well, that would never happen, but it’s on TV so they want to win and get to the finals, so they become famous. So that part of it bothers me because it’s unrealistic.

“If somebody had 25 blind dates, 25 people aren’t going to fall in love with them, but they do on this show.”

Ole Miss fans will get a chance to watch Hess work his charm this summer when the show airs. The season premiere date has not yet been announced by ABC.