Pete Golding Has Given Ole Miss a New Formula for Winning

When the Lane Kiffin era ended in an ugly way in 2025, many may have thought the Ole Miss Rebels would struggle to remain relevant.

However, the No. 7 Rebels under Pete Golding have arguably only gotten better.

Pete Golding Has Already Taken the Rebels Farther Than Lane Kiffin Ever Did

Ole Miss Rebels head coach Pete Golding looks on before the game against the Missouri Tigers at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Kiffin turned the program around, but even with a ton of talent was unable to accomplish anything massive with expensive and talented rosters. Kiffin's record at Ole Miss is good, but he never accomplished anything great:

2020: 5-5
2021: 10-3 (L in the Sugar Bowl)
2022: 8-5 (L in the Texas Bowl)
2023: 11-2 (W in the Peach Bowl)
2024: 10-3 (W in the Gator Bowl)
2025: 11-1 (left for the LSU Tigers)

In the final few years of Kiffin's career at Ole Miss, the team had an extremely talented roster capable of doing so much. Every year, it felt like Ole Miss got better with the transfer portal. Unfortunately, the Rebels didn't win massive games under Kiffin when they needed to.

In 2023, Ole Miss lost 24-10 to the No. 13 Alabama Crimson Tide and 52-17 to the No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs. The Rebels missed the College Football Playoff despite a fantastic year for quarterback Jaxson Dart and running back Quinshon Judkins.

In 2024, the Rebels got an arguably easier schedule but couldn't execute, losing two games to unranked opponents and falling to the No. 13 LSU Tigers in overtime. The one year Kiffin ran No. 3 Georgia out of Oxford (28-10), the Rebels finished 10-3.

In 2025, the Rebels finally put together an excellent season, with their only regular-season loss coming against No. 9 Georgia, 43-35. Stunningly, though, as the Rebels were set to finish 11-1, rumors about LSU surfaced, and they proved true.

Somehow, a coach left a national title contender on the verge of greatness. But that's when Ole Miss promoted defensive coordinator Pete Golding to head coach and hoped he'd take the Rebels farther than Kiffin ever did.

With quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and running back Kewan Lacy, the Rebels won their first-ever CFP game, something Kiffin never did. The Rebels defeated the No. 11 Tulane Green Wave 41-10 to advance to the next round. Ole Miss then upset Georgia 39-34 in one of the most exciting games Ole Miss fans have ever witnessed.

Ole Miss QB Trinidad Chambliss attempts a pass against Miami. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Unfortunately, the Rebels fell just short of reaching the national title game, losing to the No. 10 Miami Hurricanes in a 31-27 thriller. The result wasn't ideal, but Golding won two CFP games and accomplished amazing things. And now, his team is building an identity, an identity that Kiffin didn't have with the Rebels in his years there.

Golding Has Built a Program That Can and Will Win Big Games

In 2026, the Rebels are 5-1 currently, with an ugly road loss to the No. 21 Florida Gators, 52-28. But that down game, when Ole Miss didn't have Lacy and played ugly on defense, doesn't erase what the Rebels have done in other games.

Ole Miss defeated the Kiffin-led No. 7 LSU 32-24 in Week 3. Then, despite an unencouraging loss in the swamp, the Rebels bounced back, blowing out the Vanderbilt Commodores 52-17 and then destroying the No. 13 Missouri Tigers 31-3.

The Tigers themselves had blown out Florida 45-17 and the Texas A&M Aggies 27-6 in the weeks prior. Golding and Ole Miss showed just how good the Rebels can be by dominating an extremely talented Missouri team.

Ole Miss has become a team that can dominate the trenches, remain effective through the air, and create chaos on defense. If the Rebels can survive a desperate Texas Longhorns team, then the schedule ahead really isn't too rough.

Texas QB Arch Manning. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

On Nov. 7th, the Rebels still have to host Georgia, but they've shown they can defeat Kirby Smart's team. After six weeks of the season, Ole Miss can still compete for the SEC and looks like a national title contender.

If anyone doubted how the Rebels would perform without Kiffin, Golding has clearly shown he can be just as good as him, if not better.

Kiffin was a good head coach in Oxford, but Golding might just be better. He has built a winning identity and a team that can compete with any team in the country. Golding is 2-1 against Top 10 teams so far.

The Golding-led Rebels feel like they can win a game when they really need to. Something Ole Miss has struggled mightily to do over the last few years under its previous head coach.

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