Why Pete Golding's Ole Miss football defense may always be under construction in this transfer era
ATLANTA — Penn State assistant Ja'Juan Seider, who will help call the offense for the Nittany Lions in the Peach Bowl on Saturday, looks at the first Ole Miss football defense to finish in the SEC's top half since 2014 and sees a unit still searching.
"I think they're still trying to figure their stuff out a little bit, just watching them," Seider said Wednesday. "You take that many transfers, even this late in the season. Trying to do what's best for their players. I think those guys are trying to find their feet."
Seider's perspective on the transfer portal and its relationship with roster turnover and scheme implementation is different than the one that exists at Ole Miss. Penn State has landed fewer transfers since 2021 than Ole Miss has in the last four weeks. These are two programs built with different tools.
Still, Seider's take offered a reminder: Though it didn't often feel like it this season, especially relative to Ole Miss' recent defensive standard, coordinator Pete Golding's unit is under construction. Maybe, in this current college football environment, it always will be.
"I think now it's more building teams than programs," Golding said Wednesday. "Don't take that the wrong way, just because the transition happens so fast. Developmental players that you used to take, to be able to add bulk and size and strength, some of those guys, depending upon their mental makeup, you're not going to have a chance to develop because they're not going to come and play as true freshmen.
"Depending upon who's in their circle, December hits and the portal opens, and they might seek other opportunities. You've invested six to 10 months, depending if they're mid-semester or summer, that you're not going to get back, that they're not going to get back."
The team Golding constructed on defense in 2023 probably had a more significant impact on the Rebels' win-loss record than the 22.3 points per game it allowed would indicate. Ole Miss (10-2) held two of its SEC opponents under 10 points, and five of them under 25 – something Ole Miss achieved just eight times against conference opposition in the three seasons prior.
That unit has the opportunity to become the first Ole Miss team ever to win 11 games in a season when it takes on the Nittany Lions (10-2) in the Peach Bowl on Saturday (11 a.m., ESPN).
In the meantime, Golding has already started building his 2024 defense. Elite defensive transfers like top overall portal prospect Walter Nolen (Texas A&M), Princely Umanmielen (Florida) and Tyler Baron (Tennessee) will make the Rebels significantly more athletic than they were this season. As coach Lane Kiffin said, the Rebels will look better in their uniforms.
But, to scale his defense up, Golding needs a foundation. It's challenging, he said, to install a new system in one season. It can be difficult for his veterans to lead properly as they constantly make mistakes trying to understand what's being asked of them. There are no tutors available if everyone is unsure of the course material.
Now equipped with 12 months of experience and understanding, Golding said he hopes returning veterans like JJ Pegues, Trey Washington and Jared Ivey can form that bedrock.
"Year Two to me has always been better because you have guys that already know the system," Golding said, "so they can start pulling people with them...And now other guys that are coming in are fitting into that."
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: Why Penn State sees an Ole Miss football defense under construction
