Ole Miss AD Keith Carter Pushes Back on Kiffin’s Version of Events, Details Why Ole Miss Moved Forward with Pete Golding
OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss athletics director Keith Carter offered the clearest account yet of the turbulent days surrounding Lane Kiffin’s departure, and his description stands in stark contrast to the narrative Kiffin has presented publicly.
During an in-depth interview with Richard Cross on SuperTalk Mississippi, Carter addressed the timeline of Kiffin’s exit for LSU and clarified several claims made by the former Rebels head coach. It was Carter’s first extended breakdown of the situation since Kiffin left Oxford on Nov. 30 — the same day Kiffin said he learned he would not be permitted to coach Ole Miss in the College Football Playoff.
Full interview: https://t.co/sHAjgEn4zD
— SuperTalk Mississippi (@supertalk) December 3, 2025
Carter pushed back forcefully.
“There’s been a lot of things he’s said publicly that I’m not sure have been totally accurate. I think that both coach and his representation knew several weeks ago that coaching in the playoffs was not an option if he was not going to be the Ole Miss head coach.”
Keith Carter on SuperTalk Mississippi regarding Lane Kiffin
Disputing Kiffin’s Account of the Team Meeting
Kiffin previously indicated players encouraged him to stay during a meeting with team leaders. Carter confirmed the meeting took place but contradicted Kiffin’s description — a sentiment echoed publicly by players such as center Brycen Sanders and linebacker Suntarine Perkins.
Perkins posted on social media: “That was not the message you said in the meeting room. Everybody that was in there can vouch on this.”
Carter didn’t directly address individual posts but made clear the staff’s view aligned with the players’.
“I’ll let them kind of tweet out what they want to tweet out and give information that they want to give, but I don’t think the way that he portrayed that meeting was accurate. There was a lot of pushback to him leaving … I think begging for him to stay is certainly an overstatement.”
Keith Carter
Why Ole Miss Didn’t Launch a Search
When Kiffin officially informed Ole Miss he was heading to LSU, the administration immediately turned inward rather than outward. Carter revealed that he and Chancellor Glenn Boyce jointly determined a coaching search wasn’t necessary — because the person they trusted to lead the program was already on staff.
Within hours, defensive coordinator Pete Golding was elevated to head coach.
“That was an option, to name an interim, but the more myself and the Chancellor thought about it, why do that when we have the guy we know is the guy right in front of us? We decided to go ahead and make the move, make Pete the permanent coach.”
Keith Carter on naming Pete Golding permanent head coach
Carter added that even if Ole Miss had conducted a national search, Golding would have been a serious candidate.
“Pete Golding was a guy who always was in the mix with us,” he said. “He’s a guy that’s been here for three years. He’s got a great track record, coaching at Alabama and winning national championships. Pete’s a guy in that building that everybody respects. Not just the defense.”
Keith Carter on Pete Golding
Positioning Ole Miss for the CFP
With the Rebels positioned at No. 6 in the College Football Playoff rankings, Carter said the department worked extensively behind the scenes to ensure the committee had full clarity about staff continuity during the postseason.
Ole Miss announced early on Dec. 2 which coaches would remain with the program through the playoff run — including offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr., who is set to join Kiffin at LSU afterward.
“I could not be more fired up about having Charlie Weis back here,” Carter said. “We were in constant communication, not only with Charlie, but with his representation. He was telling us from the very get-go he was going to come back and call the plays and he was not going to leave this team on this playoff run.”
Carter stressed the efforts made to insure the Rebels’ position in the rankings wasn’t compromised due to staffing changes.
“We were doing a ton of work behind the scenes, working with committee members,” Carter said. “Making sure that they had all the information on who was going to coach our team … couldn’t be more excited about coach Golding and him leading the way.”
The final CFP rankings arrive Dec. 7, and Ole Miss appears poised to host a first-round playoff game based on its current position.
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. Email Evie at: Evie@TheRebelWalk.com
