$6.8 million college football coach predicted to be suspended after tampering

A coach at a Power Four college football program has been predicted to be suspended due to a tampering incident.

Ole Miss head coach Pete Golding runs off the field during warmups before the CFP Fiesta Bowl at the State Farm Stadium, in Glendale, Ariz., on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. | Lauren Witte/Clarion Ledger / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The 2025-2026 college football coaching carousel wrapped up a chaotic cycle, saw more than 15 different Power Four programs part ways with head coaches. Beginning with DeShaun Foster's firing at UCLA in September and ending with Kyle Whittingham's hiring at Michigan in December, the changes were continuous throughout the season.

No coaching change received more attention than that of Lane Kiffin's departure from College Football Playoff-bound Ole Miss for rival LSU at the end of November. The Rebels quickly decided to name defensive coordinator Pete Golding as their head coach following Kiffin's departure.

Golding has steadily climbed the college football coaching ranks over the last two decades.

After finishing his playing career at Delta State, he became a graduate assistant for the Statesmen in 2006. He made stops as a defensive coordinator at Tusculum, Delta State and Southeastern Louisiana before breaking into the FBS ranks.

The first job Golding held at the FBS level was defensive backs coach at Southern Miss in 2014. His first job as a defensive coordinator was at UTSA in 2016, a job he held for two seasons under current Rebels running backs coach Frank Wilson.

Golding's introduction to SEC football was in the form of the defensive coordinator position at Alabama under Nick Saban in 2018. He held the post for five seasons, the third of which saw the Crimson Tide win a College Football Playoff National Championship game.

Alabama defensive coordinator Pete Golding before the Texas A&M game at Kyle Field in College Station, Texas on Saturday October 12, 2019. Golding601 | Mickey Welsh / USA TODAY NETWORK

Golding held the defensive coordinator role at Ole Miss for three seasons before the Rebels named him their permanent head coach. His first three games were in the midst of the College Football Playoff and featured wins over No. 11 seed Tulane (41-10) and No. 3 seed Georgia (39-34) before a loss to Miami (31-27) in the semifinals.

The Rebels' improbable run in the College Football Playoff instilled belief that Golding could win at Ole Miss in the long term. However, a certain moment in his brief tenure as head coach has brought controversy to the Ole Miss football program.

28 writers at The Athletic compiled a list of way-too-early projections for the 2026 college football season. Grace Raynor predicted that Golding would face a suspension due to a tampering incident that occurred during the 2026 NCAA transfer portal cycle.

The incident involves former California linebacker Luke Ferrelli, who finished 2025 with 91 tackles, a sack, a pass defended and an interception. Ferrelli previously committed to Clemson and enrolled in classes at the university before flipping his commitment to the Rebels.

No college football coach or program has been punished for tampering in the era of NIL and the transfer portal.

Three different incidents of alleged tampering have, at the very least, been threatened with legal action over the past two years, two of which involved Miami and the other involving LSU. However, neither Mario Cristobal nor Lane Kiffin was punished for trying to lure players into the portal.

Ole Miss head coach Pete Golding against the Miami Hurricanes during the 2026 Fiesta Bowl and semifinal game of the College Football Playoff | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images