Ole Miss doesn’t exactly enter 2026 as a team trying to prove it can survive the Lane Kiffin era. The Rebels already answered that question on the field.
Kiffin departed for LSU shortly after the Egg Bowl against Mississippi State, but Ole Miss kept rolling under interim head coach Pete Golding. What followed was a College Football Playoff run that included a home win over Tulane in the opening round and a Sugar Bowl victory over Georgia, one of the best teams in college football.
That postseason surge has carried directly into the new season, and the Rebels are being treated like a real contender again. Ole Miss is ranked ninth, a clear sign that the national view is that this program still has plenty left in the tank without Kiffin on the sideline.
A big reason for that belief is the roster Golding helped assemble after the season. Ole Miss attacked the transfer portal and now looks loaded on defense, with what could be its most talented unit in the past 10 years. Will Echoles leads the way as a preseason All-American, while Suntarine Perkins and Kam Franklin give the Rebels more high-end pieces to build around.
The offense is hardly starting from scratch either. Trindiad Chambliss is back after a strong 2025 season, giving Ole Miss one of the best quarterbacks in the nation. Kewan Lacy also returns after setting several Ole Miss rushing records in 2025 and entering the year as a Heisman candidate.
There’s been turnover on the coaching staff, but not panic. Charlie Weis Jr. followed Kiffin to LSU, and Ole Miss responded by bringing in John David Baker as offensive coordinator.
Baker already knows the program well. He previously worked on the Rebels’ staff before taking the offensive coordinator job at ECU, and now he returns to work with Golding and quarterbacks coach Joe Judge.
On the other side of the ball, Bryan Brown is set for his first full season as defensive coordinator after previously serving as co-defensive coordinator and secondary coach. With the pieces in place around him, Brown will be tasked with helping guide one of the SEC’s deepest and most talented defenses.
The setup is simple enough: Ole Miss has the roster, the quarterback, and the coaching structure to chase another deep playoff run in 2026.
In Other News...
Pete Golding Is Taking A Very Different Ole Miss Roster Approach
Pete Golding is approaching the new NCAA eligibility landscape with a different kind of patience at Ole Miss, even as the changes have already started to reshape rosters across the league. The rule adjustments that allow certain players to come back for a fifth year have created a fresh market for experienced veterans, and former Rebels are among the ones taking advantage of it by moving on to Lane Kiffins current team in Baton Rouge.
Golding has not added one of those players yet, but he has not shut the door on the idea either. His stance is more selective than aggressive, with the Rebels coach saying roster fit and team needs will guide any move as the ripple effects of the eligibility shift keep playing out. Kiffin, meanwhile, has been more active in that same space, underscoring just how differently the two coaches are navigating the same new reality. [Read more 🡒]
Ole Miss Took Unusual Security Steps After Lane Kiffin Left
Ole Miss found itself dealing with more than just the jolt of Lane Kiffins departure to LSU, and the school responded by tightening security around its football facility. Defensive coordinator Pete Golding said the team did not formally call the FBI, but he did confirm that a players father who works for the bureau locally checked the building for listening devices, a detail that underscores how strange the aftermath of the coaching change became around the program.
The Rebels had already taken standard security precautions during their playoff run, but the response after Kiffin left went a step further and reflected the unease that can follow a high-profile exit. For a team trying to keep its focus on the field, even routine operations suddenly carried a little more sensitivity, and Ole Miss made sure the building itself was treated with the same caution as the game plan. [Read more 🡒]
SEC Takes A Stand As Former Rebels Fuel A New Concern
The SECs latest statement landed as more than just another conference memo, especially for schools like Ole Miss that have watched the transfer market and roster rules reshape college football almost by the week. By backing the Protect College Sports Act, the league made its position plain: college sports are for college athletes, and the conference wants that boundary protected as the sport keeps blurring lines between the college and pro levels.
For Ole Miss, the issue has a more immediate edge because former Rebels DaeQuan Wright and Zxavian Harris, both recently waived by NFL teams, are reportedly on track to commit to LSU. Their situation reflects a growing trend of former professional players heading back to college football, a development that could alter how rosters are built and how the 2026 season begins to take shape. [Read more 🡒]