Ole Miss DC Pete Golding making his mark in Oxford | ‘There’s Just Something About Coach Golding’
OXFORD, Miss. — He may be known as “Portal Pete” due to his prowess in getting players to Ole Miss, but the Rebels’ defensive coordinator Pete Golding has certainly impressed his players on the practice field once he helps get them to Oxford.
The players he recruits and gets to Ole Miss know there is something special about their coach, even if they cannot quite explain it.
“I really can’t put my finger on it, there’s just something about coach Golding,” linebacker Chris”Pooh” Paul said.
“He’s a special guy – a special coach – just someone you want to be coached by. He requires and he puts effort towards giving your best every day and putting your best foot forward. You’re going to mess up, but mess up full speed, just always giving that effort, man. And Coach Golding is that guy, his phone is open 24/7. No matter what’s going on, football or not. So, when I was going through my recruitment process, (hearing from) Coach Golding was like an everyday thing. I knew at 6 p.m., I was getting a call from Coach Golding, and at 7 p.m., my parents (were getting a call from him). He is just a high-energetic guy, someone you would love to put your back against the wall for him and that’s what I’m going to do.”
Ole Miss LB Chris “Pooh” Paul
After speaking with Golding and head coach Lane Kiffin, the former Arkansas star had a pretty good idea where he was headed.
“Once I hit the portal I had coaches calling left and right,” Paul said.
“But you know just talking with Coach Golding and Coach Kiffin, I knew that Ole Miss was the place for me. I committed as soon as I came down here that same night so I already had in my mind I wanted to be a Rebel.“
Pooh Paul on Ole Miss
Golding not only has a hands-on approach to coaching, he seems to have a knack of knowing just where each of his players should be at a certain moment.That talent is uncanny to some of his players.
“He’s really amazing,” safety John Saunders, Jr., said of his defensive coordinator.
“He knows all 11 positions on defense, so it’s amazing to just be around him. He could coach me (in the secondary) and then a second later he is coaching a (defensive) tackle. He’s so versatile; he knows everywhere and everyone that’s supposed to be, so it’s very good. He coaches my technique a lot so he really helps me become a better player every day.“
John Saunders, Jr.Â
Although Ole Miss held a regular-season schedule that ranked fifth overall in ESPN’s 2023 FPI rankings, the Rebel defense’s points-per-game allowed went down almost four points in 2023 (21.8 per game) over the 2022 season (25.5 points per game). Golding’s unit finished as the No. 4 scoring defense in the SEC in 2023 after having ranked No. 9 in 2022 before his arrival.
Pete Golding’s defense is expected to be much-improved over last year’s version and with the explosiveness of the Rebels’ offense, Ole Miss could be in store for a special season as the College Football Playoff expands to 12 teams.
Spring drills conclude with the Grove Bowl April 13.
The regular season kicks off at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium Aug. 31 against Furman.
Steve Barnes
Steve Barnes joins The Rebel Walk staff as a senior writer and brings a trifecta of journalistic experience. As a writer, he has covered college sports for Rivals.com, Football.com and SaturdayDownSouth.com as well as served as a beat writer for various traditional newspapers.
He has been a broadcaster for arena football and several national tournament events for the National Junior College Athletic Association as well as hosting various shows on radio.
A former sports information director at Albany (Ga.) State University and an assistant at Troy and West Florida, he has helped host many NCAA conference, regional and national events, including serving five years on the media committee of the NCAA Division II World Series.
Barnes, a native of Pensacola, Fla., attended Ole Miss in 1983-84, where his first journalism teacher was David Kellum. The duo has come a long way since that time.
He will bring a proven journalistic track record, along with a knack for finding the out-of-the-ordinary story angles to The Rebel Walk.
Barnes continues to reside in Pensacola a mere ten minutes from the beach because he does have taste and a brain.
