How Lane Kiffin's social media game transformed Ole Miss defense in transfer portal, helped Pete Golding
ATLANTA — Pete Golding is not a social media enthusiast. The Ole Miss football defensive coordinator has not posted anything other than shark emojis, which signal that he's landed a commitment, since Sept. 1.
He leaves the memes to his boss, Lane Kiffin. But Golding certainly knows how to leverage the coach's social media acumen for the good of his defense.
"It really does (matter)," Golding said on Wednesday. "That was a transition for all of us. I mean, having a social media platform be part of a decision. Even for guys who come back. They're like, 'Hey, I wanna be more involved. I want to increase my brand.' "
Golding believes that some players who may not qualify as sure-thing NFL prospects will enjoy the highest earning potential of their career while in college, thanks to the impact of NIL.
Social media audience and the boost that can come with playing for Kiffin ‒ a one-man marketing campaign ‒ can impact the size of their NIL checks.
"Coach Kiffin's on the cutting edge of that," Golding said. "So I think it's been huge. You take the social media platform, you take him being an NFL head coach before, which is that's where they all want to go. So you start adding all that together on top of the scheme they want to play in, and I think it's a good recipe."
Golding's meeting with the media came of a Peach Bowl matchup with Penn State (10-2) on Saturday (11 a.m., ESPN). But the conversation revolved around his efforts in the transfer portal, which have made Ole Miss (10-2) the talk of the college football world in recent weeks.
Golding has helped Ole Miss land what is ranked as the top transfer portal class in the country as of Wednesday, according to 247Sports. Nine of the 12 transfers committed to the Rebels play defense.
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Edge rushers Princely Umanmielen and Tyler Baron combined for 13 sacks in the SEC this season, and are both considered top-15 players in this year's portal class. They've joined Texas A&M defensive lineman Walter Nolen, the No. 1 player in the portal, to give Golding a truly fearsome haul before you even account for the three other defensive SEC starters set to transfer to Ole Miss.
To land them, Golding has embraced the realities of modern college football ‒ and deferred to Kiffin's expertise on all things social media.
"That's been a transition for me. I normally just point them to the guy and say, 'Hey, I know this agent, this marketing guy, we'll get you these deals, go talk to them, I have no idea,' " Golding said laughing. "We'll package you up on defense, we'll coach you up, we'll have fun. I assure you that I'm not going to increase their brand."
David Eckert covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at deckert@gannett.com or reach him on Twitter @davideckert98.
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This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Lane Kiffin social media game transforms Ole Miss football in portal
