Ole Miss players ‘pumped’ about Pete Golding replacing Lane Kiffin as head coach, per report
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Ole Miss has apparently promoted defensive coordinator Pete Golding to head coach after Lane Kiffin‘s departure for LSU.
Kiffin announced his decision to leave during a team meeting on Sunday afternoon before making an official announcement (and taking a parting shot at Ole Miss AD Keith Carter) on X moments later. And, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, Golding as the full-time head coach, not just the interim head coach, is “100 percent permanent.”
A video from The Rebel Walk’s Karis Chambliss appears to substantiate that report. An unnamed player walking out of the Manning Center after the meeting shouted, “It’s the Pete Golding era, baby!” at fans gathered outside the building.
According to On3’s Chris Low, “players were pumped when (Golding) was announced” during the meeting.
With the Lane Kiffin era over in Oxford, the Pete Golding era begins. And it looks like it will start with the biggest game in program history. The Rebels are a near-lock for a first-ever College Football Playoff appearance and could be in line to host a first-round matchup at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on either Dec. 19 or 20.
From there, the question will be how — and if — Golding continues the momentum of a program on the upswing, not just in the SEC but nationally.
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
