Lane Kiffin left Ole Miss for LSU and immediately started firing shots at his old program. That put Pete Golding, the Rebels defensive coordinator, in an awkward spot. He had to answer for his former boss’s comments at SEC Media Days this week.
Golding didn’t dodge the question when Brett McMurphy of On3 asked about the state of things between him and Kiffin. He said they’re fine personally. Kiffin texts him regularly. They talk about some things and skip others. Golding even said he holds no ill will.
But that doesn’t mean everything is smooth.
Matt Galatzan of Sports Illustrated pulled up an older quote where Golding was less diplomatic. Golding admitted his real issue wasn’t Kiffin leaving. It was how Kiffin handled the people around him. The positions they got put in. The perception it created afterward.
Golding said he told Kiffin straight up: I’m not going to sit here and tell you I respect that. Because I don’t. I get the competitive part. But the rest of it with the players and staff in this building? That I can’t get behind.
More than 20 players followed Kiffin to LSU. Multiple coaches too. Golding was one of the notable names who stayed in Oxford. Trindad Chambliss and Kewan Lacy also stayed. So the professional relationship clearly has fractures even if the personal one works.
Golding summed it up bluntly. There’s a Lane side where they’re buddies. Then there’s a professional side where he has to get on Kiffin’s ass sometimes.
That tension will play out on the field this fall. LSU hosts Ole Miss on September 19. Both teams will have recruited against each other. Both staffs will have swapped notes and complaints. And the two guys texting each other regularly will be trying to beat each other’s brains in for three hours.
That’s college football in 2025. Your buddy can also be the guy you’re trying to fire in November.
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