Ole Miss co-offensive coordinator John David Baker set to join East Carolina as offensive coordinator

OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss co-offensive coordinator and tight ends coach John David Baker will become the new offensive coordinator for the East Carolina Pirates, as multiple outlets reported Friday.  

Can confirm Ole Miss Co-OC John David Baker has agreed to become East Carolina’s next offensive coordinator. Contract still being finalized.

Pirates get their man. 33-year-old who has worked under offensive minds Lane Kiffin, Clay Helton, and Seth Littrell already.

— Stephen Igoe (@StephenIgoe) December 1, 2023

On Nov. 19, after East Carolina’s 10-0 loss to Navy, head coach Mike Houston announced he would be parting ways with long-time offensive coordinator Donnie Kirkpatrick.

Baker, who played quarterback at Abilene Christian, just completed his third season under head coach Lane Kiffin. When Baker arrived in Oxford in 2021, he served as the Rebels’ passing game coordinator. 

Reports suggest Baker was chosen OC for ECU over Chad Morris, the former Arkansas head coach and current analyst on staff with Clemson, and Keenan Bailey, the tight ends coach at Ohio State. 

Baker, who began his career as a graduate assistant for his alma mater, later took on a quality control position at North Texas. He then took the same role with the University of Southern California before becoming the Trojans’ tight ends coach in 2020. From there, he joined the Rebels. 

At East Carolina, Baker will join Coach Houston’s Pirates team that finished the 2023 season 2-10 with an offense that was ranked No. 127 in the nation. 

Ole Miss (10-2, 6-2 SEC) is now waiting to hear its bowl game destination which will be announced Sunday after the conference championship games are finished. 

Evelyn Van Pelt

Evelyn has covered sports for over two decades, beginning her journalism career as a sports writer for a newspaper in Austin, Texas. She attended Texas A&M and majored in English. Evelyn’s love for Ole Miss began when her daughter Katie attended the university on a volleyball scholarship. Evelyn created the Rebel Walk in 2013 and has served as publisher and managing editor since its inception.