Ole Miss football coach Pete Golding is doing his best to keep the flames of a potential inferno under control.
Golding’s eighth-ranked Rebels host No. 7 LSU on Saturday evening in a game and atmosphere that will not only intrigue college football fans, but those of high drama as well.
Lane Kiffin coaches the Tigers. He coached the Rebels until the 2025-26 College Football Playoff, when he bolted for LSU.
Golding was Kiffin’s defensive coordinator and took the reins of a shaken program, but one that was experiencing historic success.
Golding guided Ole Miss to CFP wins over Tulane and Georgia before falling to national runner-up Miami in the semifinals.
Kiffin procured the services of Ole Miss offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. and quarterbacks coach Dane Stevens for similar roles at LSU. He also snatched up edge rusher Princewill Umanmielen, linebacker TJ Dottery, interior offensive lineman Devin Harper and receiver Winston Watkins Jr. in the transfer portal.
All of these factors add up to a possible hailstorm of vitriol directed at Kiffin and the Tigers as the teams prepare to meet this weekend at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Miss.
Golding used his press availability on Monday to implore Rebel fans to use restraint and show proper respect to their SEC rival.
“To me, what this place has always been about and why so many people love coming here and respect this place, is because of the people that are here,” Golding said. “And how they make them feel when they come here. That’s always been something for me. When you come here and meet Ole Miss alumni and all that, they are so respectful.
“Let’s not lose that (image) over a game, over a person, over anyone else like that,” Golding said. “There’s nothing wrong with being competitive and being in the moment and being really loud and being an unbelievable fan … but at the end of the day don’t lose what we have created and what they have created for so long, which is a really unique place with really good people that’s really hard to play.”
Both teams are 2-0 early in the campaign. LSU has won home games against Clemson (51-10) and Louisiana Tech (45-14), while Ole Miss has edged then-No. 24 Louisville (41-38) in Nashville, Tenn., and routed Charlotte (41-9) in Oxford.
The Rebels won last year’s game 24-19, also at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Ole Miss was ranked No. 13 at the time, while LSU was No. 4.
–Field Level Media
