The Grove Report

Ole Miss Football Officially Hires Multiple LSU Tigers Staffers Amid Chaotic Stretch

Pete Golding and Co. officially land multiple staffers from LSU, movement continues this month.
Zack Nagy|
Courtesy of Ole Miss Rebels Football.

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Pete Golding and the Ole Miss Rebels have officially revealed multiple staff hires with the program poaching the LSU Tigers for newcomers in Oxford.

Once Lane Kiffin accepted the gig in Baton Rouge, there has been significant movement between both programs from a staff perspective with the schools "trading" front office figures and assistant coaches.

Fast forward to Sunday night and the Ole Miss program officially announced the hirings of three LSU Tigers staffers that will be in Oxford for the 2026 season.

The New Hires: LSU to Ole Miss

No. 1: Frank Wilson - Associate Head Coach/Running Backs

Wilson, a respected Southeastern Conference assistant, served as the LSU Tigers' interim head coach once Brian Kelly was fired on Oct. 26 where he led the program down the stretch of the 2025 season.

In what served as his second stint in Baton Rouge, Wilson was also the associate head coach/running backs coach on Kelly's staff across the last four seasons.

But once Kelly was fired and Lane Kiffin was hired as the next head coach of the LSU Tigers, the staff shakeup forced Wilson to look elsewhere for his next opportunity - ultimately landing on Pete Golding's Ole Miss Rebels staff.

No. 2: Austin Thomas - General Manager

Thomas joined the LSU staff in Baton Rouge as the program's general manager and senior associate athletics director in 2024, but following the hiring of Lane Kiffin, was not retained.

He returned to LSU in January of 2024 to serve as a senior associate athletic director for football administration in what became his third stint with the program.

Thomas was elevated to general manager at LSU for the first time in 2016, becoming the first person in college football to hold that title.

The savvy football mind returned to Baton Rouge after two years at Ole Miss, where he served as football chief of staff and sport administrator for the Rebel football program in 2022 and 2023.

Ole Miss had perhaps the best season in school history in 2023, winning a program record 11 games, beating Penn State in the Peach Bowl and finishing the year ranked No. 9 in the nation.

Now, Thomas makes his return to Oxford as the general manager and president of football operations in a meteoric hire for the Ole Miss program.

No. 3: Jai Choudhary - Director of Player Personnel

Choudhary departed the Ole Miss program last year to join LSU, but with new General Manager Austin Thomas back in Oxford, he's made sure to bring in his right hand man to assist him once again.

Choudhary returns to the Magnolia State to serve as the program's Director of Player Personnel.

It's another key move for the Ole Miss Rebels with the program stacking front office officials to elevate the future where it started with the return of Thomas.

More Ole Miss News:

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ESPN Predicts Outcome of Ole Miss Football vs. Tulane Green Wave in CFP Showdown

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Follow Zack Nagy on Twitter: @znagy20 and Ole Miss Rebels On SI: @OleMissOnSI for all coverage surrounding the Ole Miss program.

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Zack Nagy
ZACK NAGY

Zack Nagy is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Ole Miss Rebels On SI, a Sports Illustrated Publication. Nagy has covered Rebel Football, Baseball, Basketball and Recruiting, looking to keep readers updated on anything and everything involving Ole Miss athletics. Nagy has covered the Southeastern Conference for over half a decade after being born and raised in New Orleans (La.).

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