After Ole Miss’ victory over Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1, former Rebel head coach Lane Kiffin has recalled several coaches who chose to remain with Ole Miss during the College Football Playoffs so they can focus on the 2026 LSU squad.
Rebel offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. and running back coach Kevin Smith were in the building for practice on Monday, but wide receivers coach George McDonald, tight end coach Joe Cox, assistant
quarterback coach Dane Stevens and slot wide receiver coach Sawyer Jordan are no longer with the team.
Wide receiver Harrison Wallace III stated that Patrick Carter is now the wide receivers coach in a press conference on Sunday afternoon.
Ole Miss head coach Pete Golding addressed the media via Zoom on Saturday, Jan. 3 and answered questions about the coaching situation. For Golding, this is nothing new.
“There’s multiple teams that have coordinators that have other jobs,” Golding said. “Every year that I was at Alabama, that we went to the playoffs, we had coordinators and assistants that had other jobs. So all they’re doing, they’re doing two jobs.”
Golding seemed unconcerned about the situation and stated that it does not change anything.
“That will not be any reason for our success or lack of success within this game,” Golding said. “The play callers haven’t changed. There’s people in every room. Our players know what to do. It’s going to have no impact on the game.”
Since those assistant coaches are employed by LSU, Golding and Ole Miss have no control over where they go.
“They have every opportunity, like they have (had) up to this point, to be able to make that decision,” Golding said. “So, week in and week out, I don’t dictate whether they do that or not because they’re not employed by me. Up to this point, that is how it’s been and that’s my expectation.”
The Rebels are prepared to take on the Miami Hurricanes in the most important game in program history in the CFP semifinals on Thursday without the four assistants.
“We’ve got a lot of coaches here,” Golding said. “That’s the one thing about Division I football. This building is filled with guys that have been elite coaches everywhere they’ve been. And so now, once they’ve eliminated the rule to where there’s not 10 coaches, as long as they’re employed here, you can have a million coaches that can instruct on the field.”
Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss also has no concern about any outside noise.
“We’re really not focused on all that outside stuff right now,” Chambliss said in a press conference on Sunday, Jan. 4. “And reporters or anyone else reporting stuff that is not true or anything like that. We’re just focused on Miami and putting our best foot forward for them.”
On Dec. 8, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported that four assistant coaches that left for LSU — Cox, McDonald, Stevens and Jordan — would join Weis Jr. and remain at Ole Miss for the playoffs.
Kiffin responded to that post on X, saying: “Go win it all!”
Now, with Ole Miss in the semifinals, it appears Kiffin has rescinded this support.
Ole Miss is not the only current playoff team that has coaches finishing out the season for the playoffs, then leaving for other programs. Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein will leave to become the head coach at Kentucky in 2026. Additionally, after the playoffs, Oregon defensive coordinator Tosh Lupio will leave for California.
In the midst of the controversy, Golding has maintained his mentality of just playing football.
“But y’all can keep blowing it up and making it a big deal. It would be great,” Golding said. “We’re going to get out there and spot the ball.”
