Supporters of Hey Reb want UNLV to bring its retired mascot back, arguing that the costumed character gave children, students and longtime fans a personal connection to the university. Their campaign has revived a debate over what the mascot represents and who should decide its future.
Disclosure: I started the Change.org petition seeking Hey Reb’s return. It has passed 1,500 signatures, which the platform labels verified.
“Rebels need a Rebel to rally behind,” said Carter Wilkerson, a current UNLV dental student.
“It’s not just personal memories,” Wilkerson said.
“It’s school spirit, branding, recruiting, and community engagement, the things universities rely on to grow.”
Some supporters insist Hey Reb is irreplaceable. Others are open to alternatives, but not to having nothing.
Wilkerson said he would support a new mascot tied to Southern Nevada if reinstatement proves impossible.
“Any mascot is better than no mascot,” he said.
The History Behind Hey Reb
Hey Reb debuted in 1982 as a deliberate break from UNLV’s earlier mascot, Beauregard the Wolf, which had worn Confederate imagery. That imagery had already been eliminated in the 1970s, and the university sought a symbol that reflected independence and the Western identity of Southern Nevada without Confederate ties.
Hey Reb was designed as a frontiersman, a mountain man meant to embody the “Rebel” spirit as individuality and defiance, not Civil War symbolism.
In a November 18, 2015 report, UNLV chief diversity officer Rainier Spencer concluded that neither the Rebels nickname nor Hey Reb had a Confederate connection. His historical argument distinguished the nickname’s origin and the later mountain-man mascot from the Confederate imagery previously used by the university.
UNLV removed the Hey Reb statue in June 2020 in agreement with its donor and retired the mascot in January 2021. The university’s account acknowledges the character’s Western origins but also describes criticism of the mascot and the need to represent differing perspectives on a diverse campus. UNLV retained the Rebels name and scarlet-and-gray colors.
Spencer’s report also recorded disagreement. The undergraduate Black Student Organization generally supported the Rebels nickname but opposed Hey Reb because members thought he looked like a Confederate. The report’s conclusion about the character’s origin did not mean everyone accepted the mascot.
“It felt inconsistent and poorly thought out,” Wilkerson said.
“They removed Hey Reb but kept the Rebels name and the red color scheme. If the mascot was the problem, why keep everything else?”
“I Loved Going To Games Just To See Hey Reb.”
For the supporters interviewed here, Hey Reb’s role often began with childhood memories of games.
J.C. Carr was born and raised in Las Vegas. His parents attended UNLV.
“We have had season tickets to basketball and football since I was born,” Carr said.
“I grew up my entire life attending games.”
His first UNLV memory wasn’t even in the arena. It was watching UNLV upset No. 1 North Carolina in 2011 when he was 6 years old.
“I remember thinking that because UNLV beat the team with the number one in front of their name, it meant UNLV was actually the number one team now,” Carr said.
“As someone who grew up going to games at such a young age, I realize that kids love attending games for the theatrics,” Carr said.
“Most of all, I loved going to the games just to see Hey Reb.”
Carr said he begged for photos, made mustache cutouts in school, and associated the mascot with joy.
“I couldn’t imagine attending games as a child now without a Hey Reb there to make you smile,” he said.
“Having a mascot gives a university identity. Without one, UNLV is missing that personable engagement.”
“He Felt Like A Natural Extension of the Crowd”
Dylan Rice’s parents attended UNLV in the 1990s.
“My earliest UNLV game memory isn’t tied to a specific score or season,” Rice said.
“It’s the feeling of being in the crowd, surrounded by red, noise, and energy.”
“Hey Reb!” he said, was part of that feeling.
“He felt like a natural extension of the crowd rather than a symbol imposed on it,” Rice said.
A Fanbase Beyond Las Vegas
Nick Onuscko’s connection to UNLV began far from campus.
In the late 1980s, he watched UNLV on Southern California television, then attended games at Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State, UC Irvine, and UC Santa Barbara.
His first in-person memory: “1989 watching UNLV run up and down the court throwing alley-oops.”
Onuscko said Hey Reb gave UNLV instant identity.
“When I heard the news about Hey Reb not coming back, I was sad,” he said.
“Hey Reb was one of the best-looking mascots in all of college sports.”
He also pushed back on how the mascot is often mischaracterized.
“People most often get it wrong that Hey Reb is a guy with a gun or a racist mascot, which is not true by any means,” Onuscko said.
“A Symbol of Vegas Itself”
Some supporters never attended UNLV. Cody Tomboli, a longtime Las Vegas resident, said Hey Reb always felt like a city symbol.
“For the 18 years I’ve lived here, Hey Reb felt like a symbol of Vegas itself, rebellious, confident, and unapologetic,” Tomboli said.
“I never saw it as something tied to the Confederacy.”
Tomboli said the timing of Hey Reb’s retirement matters.
“In 2021, a lot of decisions were made when everything was under a microscope,” he said.
“Retiring Hey Reb felt more like a reaction to the moment than a reflection of how most fans experienced him.”
What Ticket Holders Say
Some supporters connect the retirement to their decisions about attending games.
“I got rid of my season tickets when you did away with OUR Hey Reb!!!” wrote Todd Henderson in a petition comment.
A supporter using the name RebelReign said he has held basketball season tickets since 2008 and football season tickets since 2024. He said he understood the mascot’s importance more clearly after its retirement.
“I truly did not appreciate the impact the loss would have,” he said.
RebelReign said his children loved seeing Hey Reb, high-fiving him, and taking pictures with him.
“He always brought joy and energy,” he said.
“He was more mobile than most mascots, just a head and minimal elements, and he connected with fans.”
RebelReign rejected the idea that this debate is ideological.
“This is not liberal versus conservative,” he said.
“I am a proud Democrat, former president of the UNLV Young Democrats, and I’m passionate about bringing back Hey Reb.”
RebelReign also sees financial value in the mascot’s identity, though he offered no formal valuation.
“His brand identity is worth many millions,” RebelReign said.
“He’s a recruiting tool. The kids love him.”
Current Students, Not Just Alumni
Wilkerson brings the perspective of a current graduate student rather than an alumnus looking back on undergraduate years.
Wilkerson grew up a Reno fan and openly disliked UNLV before attending dental school.
“That came with a pretty automatic hatred for UNLV,” he said.
That changed after moving to Las Vegas.
“I fell in love with the energy of the city and the sense of community at UNLV,” he said. “I proudly chose to #BeaRebel.”
Wilkerson attended his first UNLV football game alone in 2023.
“A couple invited me to sit in their season-ticket seats and treated me like family,” he said.
Wilkerson previously served as a collegiate mascot at the University of San Diego.
“I saw firsthand how powerful a mascot can be,” he said.
“Kids light up instantly.”
The Radio Debate And The Nostalgia Claim
The issue resurfaced publicly during a local radio segment following a Review-Journal article. On air, Matilda Guerrero Miller, a UNLV alumna, argued against reinstating Hey Reb, saying the push was driven by nostalgia and branding rather than current students.
The supporters interviewed for this story include a current graduate student, alumni and fans who never attended UNLV. They offer several reasons for wanting the mascot back, though their views do not represent the whole campus.
David Cho met Hey Reb during new-student orientation in 2018. Dank, known online as sergeantdank_ , grew up seeing a sea of red on the Strip.
Dank said, “Reb matters to me because that’s who Vegas is.”
Dank acknowledged he never attended UNLV due to transfer-credit issues, but still identifies with the program.
“I wear my Red Reb shirt and support UNLV even more,” he said.
“We are Rebels. Cannot change that.”
The Voice From Inside The Suit
Jon “Jersey” Goldman, who portrayed Hey Reb for six years, said the experience was overwhelmingly positive.
“When it comes to the memories, it was always positive,” Goldman said.
“There was really never negativity.”
Goldman said the debate persists because no replacement for the mascot has emerged.
“Everybody’s focused on rushing to argue back and forth,” he said, “instead of somebody coming up with a solution.”
What Compromise Could Look Like
RebelReign said compromise would require something “truly spectacular.” Dank suggested allowing a new logo option that reflects Rebel identity without added stress.
The Message To Leadership
“UNLV has the colors. The name. The history,” RebelReign said.
“What we’re missing is the face.”
Supporters differ on whether only Hey Reb will do or a new mascot could work. What they share is a desire for a character on the sidelines again, even as the university’s history shows that choosing one means addressing more than their memories alone.
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