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The Ole Miss Rebels are two wins away from their first college football national championship in over 60 years after their win over Georgia in the Sugar Bowl.
But if former head coach Lane Kiffin and new employer LSU have their way, the Tigers could the legs out from under the Rebs at the worst possible time.
For the first two rounds of the playoffs, seven staff members who left Ole Miss for LSU with Kiffin have remained with the Rebels:
- Charlie Weis Jr., Offensive Coordinator and QB Coach
- Joe Cox, Co-Offensive Coordinator and TE Coach
- George McDonald, WR Coach
- James Cregg, OL Assistant
- Billy Glasscock, General Manager
- Thaddeus Rivers, Director of Football Ops
- Nick Savage, Strength & Conditioning Coach
However, with the Rebels now in the semifinals and the transfer portal officially open as of Friday morning, Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports reports that those assistants may not remain with Ole Miss through the semifinals against against Miami.
It remains unclear if six Ole Miss assistants who’ve signed with LSU will coach the Rebels in the CFP semifinals next week vs. Miami, per Yahoo Sports’ @RossDellenger.
Many around the program expect some or all to officially join the LSU staff and move on. pic.twitter.com/rL3yj4hAfv
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) January 2, 2026
Meanwhile, Matt Moscona, the publisher of LousianaSports.net reports that a source at LSU told him that sustaining the split-coaching staff situation was “not sustainable” much longer.
That’s especially true as Ole Miss weighs up whether or not to file an illegal tampering claim against LSU. Moscona also states that six of the assistant coaches left the Rebels’ win over Georgia in the Sugar Bowl and immediately returned to Baton Rouge to work for Kiffin and LSU.
So if Ole Miss is going to pull off the unthinkable, it may well have to do so with a patchwork coaching staff in place.