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Ole Miss coach Pete Golding prepares for Miami and the opportunity to coach the College Football Playoff semifinal is shorthanded.
Golding said LSU will ultimately decide which, if any, of the assistants who have committed to join Lane Kiffin in Baton Rouge will be allowed to work out for Ole Miss in next week’s Fiesta Bowl.
Several key coordinators and assistants agreed to contracts with LSU shortly after Kiffin left the Rebels, including offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr., tight ends coach/co-offensive coordinator Joe Cox and wide receivers coach/passing game coordinator George McDonald.
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Ole Miss head coach Pete Golding lifts the Sugar Bowl trophy after the Sugar Bowl and College Football Playoff quarterfinals at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on Jan. 1, 2026. (Ayrton Breckenridge/Clarion Ledger/USA Today Network via Imagn Images)
“They have every opportunity that they have up to this point to be able to make that decision,” Golding told reporters on Saturday. “So week in and week out, I don’t dictate whether they do it or not, because they’re not employed by me. Up until now, that’s how it’s been, and that’s my expectation.”
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Ole Miss can secure the program’s first-ever national title if the Rebels can win two more games. ESPN reported that at least some of the assistant coaches in limbo would prefer to stick with Ole Miss as long as the team remains alive in the playoffs.
Golding emphasized that the uncertainty will not interfere with Fiesta Bowl preparations.
“Our players know what to do,” he said. “It won’t affect the game. Keep blowing it up and making it a big thing, that would be great.”
Mississippi Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin (right) talks with offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. during warmups prior to a game against the Georgia State Panthers at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. (Petre Thomas/Imagn Images)
He also acknowledged that he is not clear when he will receive confirmation of the assistants’ availability.
“I don’t know. Do you know if you’re going to show up for work tomorrow? I mean, we don’t know. These are grown people making decisions, so I have no idea. We’re going to go out there and spot the ball. We’ve got plenty of people in this building who showed up this morning. We’ll be fine.”
Ole Miss will also ultimately lose senior analyst/pass game specialist Dane Stevens and graduate assistant Sawyer Jordan to LSU. Nevertheless, Golding remains confident in his staff, one he said is “full of elite coaches everywhere” who can handle their respective responsibilities.
Mississippi Rebels head coach Pete Golding is showered with a Gatorade cooler by his players after their game against the Georgia Bulldogs in the 2025 Sugar Bowl and College Football Playoff quarterfinal game at Caesars Superdome. (Geoff Burke/Imagn Images)
“A lot of guys that you don’t know by name are actually the ones who are coaching and teaching players,” he said. “And so we have an elite staff that has been together for a long time, that knows the ins and outs. So no different than during COVID when a coach didn’t show up for the game.
“Obviously, these things come up every year, and guys try to do both jobs, and they have responsibility for the new job that takes precedence, especially in times like this. And then they can make both work. If they can’t, they can’t. That wouldn’t be a reason for success or lack of success in this game. Playcallers haven’t changed.”
Before the upset victory in the Sugar Bowl, Golding guided Ole Miss to a first-round playoff victory over Tulane.
