BOOM! Pete Golding hires John David Baker as Ole Miss Offensive Coordinator for 2026

OXFORD, Miss. — In his first major staff move as Ole Miss head coach, Pete Golding has turned to a familiar face to guide the Rebels’ offense, hiring East Carolina offensive coordinator John David Baker to return to Oxford and take over play-calling duties beginning in 2026.

Ole Miss has hired John David Baker as its next offensive coordinator!

Baker served on the Rebels’ coaching staff from 2021-2023 where he was the tight ends coach as well as the co-offensive coordinator. After two seasons at ECU, Baker is back in the ‘Sip as Pete Golding’s… pic.twitter.com/eB24sCVe7m

— The Rebel Walk (@TheRebelWalk) December 9, 2025

One of the most sought-after offensive coordinators in this cycle, Baker brings with him a proven track record of explosive, high-tempo production — and his arrival comes at a crucial moment as Ole Miss prepares for both a College Football Playoff run and a fast-approaching transfer portal window. The move was first reported by CBS Sports.

Ole Miss is expected to hire ECU’s John David Baker as offensive coordinator, sources tell @CBSSports.

Led the way as ECU finished the regular season ranked 14th nationally in total offense. Before ECU, he was co-OC under Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss. pic.twitter.com/nesNWPSUi4

— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) December 9, 2025

On Sunday afternoon, Ole Miss officially announced Pete Golding had been named the new head coach of the Ole Miss football program. While former Ole Miss offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. is set to serve in the same position at LSU, he will be coaching the Rebels in the college football playoffs. But John David Baker will take the reigns for 2026.

The timing of the hiring of Baker is especially important given the upcoming transfer portal set to begin in January. The portal officially opens on January 2, 2026, for a 15-day window that runs through January 16, 2026.

The John David Baker File

A former Ole Miss assistant as recently as 2023, John David Baker has been the offensive coordinator at East Carolina the past two seasons. He installed the high-powered, high-tempo offense that Ole Miss fans were used to seeing in the early 2020s.

In his two seasons at ECU, Baker had the Pirates as one of the top-five quickest teams in terms of seconds-per-play. ECU is also second in total plays per game this regular season with 79.5.

With Baker on board, East Carolina has won 8+ games in back-to-back seasons for the first time in over ten years. The simple, but quite telling, stat is that in 2023 ECU averaged 17.3 points per game — but since Baker has been calling the plays they bumped it up to 32.0 and 33.5 points per game in the last two seasons.

At Ole Miss

Baker began his tenure at Ole Miss on Jan. 25, 2021, after he was named the passing game coordinator and tight ends coach ending a two-year stint with USC where he served as the tight ends coach in 2020 under head coach Clay Helton. He was named to 247Sports’ 30Under30 in 2020 one year after he was named an offensive quality control analyst for the Trojans during the 2019 season.

During his three-year stint with the Rebels, Baker helped oversee a very potent Ole Miss attack. In 2022, the Rebel rushing attack broke the school record with 3,336 yards while tallying nearly 6,500 yards of total offense (6,453) which ranks fourth all-time. In 2023, the Rebels averaged 455.4 yards per game and ranked among the NCAA leaders in seven offensive categories, en route to securing their third consecutive bowl game appearance after posting a 10-2 record.

In his first season at Ole Miss, Baker oversaw a lights-out passing attack from the Rebel offense. Ole Miss led the SEC in total offense (492.5 ypg), engineered by a superb final season by quarterback Matt Corral, who left Ole Miss as one of its best signal callers of all time. The Rebels finished the 2021 season with a 10-3 record and an appearance in the Sugar Bowl against Texas Tech.

Prior to Ole Miss

The San Angelo, Texas, native was an offensive quality control coach at North Texas for three seasons (2016-18). In 2018, UNT ranked No. 12 in passing (306.8), No. 20 in total offense (460.5) and No. 26 in scoring (34.6). Quarterback Mason Fine set school season records for passing yards (4,052) and touchdowns (31). The Mean Green qualified for bowl games each year that Baker was on staff (2016 Heart of Dallas, 2017 New Orleans, 2018 New Mexico).

Prior to North Texas, he was a graduate assistant at Abilene Christian, his alma mater, in 2014 and 2015, working with the quarterbacks.

Baker played quarterback for the Amarillo Venom indoor football team in 2014 (Lone Star Football League) and 2015 (Champions Indoor Football).

He played quarterback for four seasons (2010-13) at Abilene Christian. As a senior in 2013, Baker completed 247-of-369 passes (66.9%) for 3,376 yards and 35 TDs, with just five interceptions. Baker also rushed for 256 yards and five TDs. His 40 total TDs were a school record. In his first career start, he threw for a school-record seven touchdowns against Concordia College.

He prepped at Lake View High (Texas) where he earned all-district honors in both football and baseball. Baker threw for 2,240 yards and 22 touchdowns and ran for 688 yards and 18 TDs his senior season.

Baker received his bachelor’s degree in exercise science in 2014 and his master’s degree in higher education in 2016, both from Abilene Christian. He and his wife Sarah have one daughter, Ella.

Final thoughts

With Baker’s return, Ole Miss gains far more than familiarity — it gains one of the nation’s most dynamic offensive minds at a moment when stability, identity, and recruiting momentum matter most. His track record of fast-paced, high-output offenses fits seamlessly with the foundation already in place, giving Pete Golding a proven playcaller as the Rebels prepare for both a playoff run now and a pivotal reset in 2026. As the portal window approaches and a new era begins in Oxford, Baker’s homecoming signals that Ole Miss isn’t slowing down — it’s doubling down on the explosive style that has defined its rise. Hotty Toddy, and welcome home.