Lane Kiffin picks LSU, won't coach in CFP as Ole Miss promotes Pete Golding

We have white smoke! Lane Kiffin is swapping the Grove for the Bayou.

Kiffin is leaving Ole Miss football to be the LSU coach.

Kiffin, who is replacing Brian Kelly in Baton Rouge, made his decision two days after winning a third straight Egg Bowl , securing the Rebels' first College Football Playoff berth and setting a program record with 11 wins. He will not coach Ole Miss ' CFP game. Defensive coordinator Pete Golding will be promoted to permanent head coach and lead the Rebels in the CFP and beyond.

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Golding signed a three-year contract extension this past offseason that pushed him up the ladder among the highest-paid assistants in the SEC with a salary of $2.55 million this season. The third-year defensive coordinator previously held the same position at No. 10 Alabama , helping the Crimson Tide run the table for the 2020 national championship.

"After a lot of prayer and time spent with family, I made the difficult decision to accept the head coaching position at LSU," Kiffin posted to social media at 3 p.m., Sunday . "I was hoping to complete a historic six season run with this year's team by leading Ole Miss through the playoffs, capitalizing on the team's incredible success and their commitment to finish strong, and investing everything into a playoff run with guardrails in place to protect the program in any areas of concern. My request to do so was denied by Keith Carter despite the team also asking him to allow me to keep coaching them so they could better maintain their high level of performance. Unfortunately, that means Friday's Egg Bowl was my last game coaching the Rebels.

"While I am looking forward to a new start with a unique opportunity at LSU, I will forever cherish the incredible six years I spent at Ole Miss and will be rooting hard for the team to complete their mission and bring a championship to Oxford."

LSU athletic director Verge Ausberry posted a message to social media as well Sunday afternoon. It read:

"We are thrilled to welcome Coach Kiffin as the next head coach of the LSU football program. We shared when we began this search that LSU would secure the best coach in the country and Lane Kiffin is just that. Lane is a proven winner who has thrived in the era of college athletics that requires coaches to adapt and innovate. His passion, creativity and authenticity make him the ideal leader to guide LSU into the future and consistently position us among the sport's elite. I want to welcome Lane and his family to Baton Rouge, and I'd like to thank our search committee, as well as our university and state leadership for their critical support and counsel throughout the process."

The day after the Egg Bowl had been circled as a decision day after Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter set a deadline for clarity on Kiffin's status. ESPN's Marty Smith reported Kiffin went to the Ole Miss football facility Saturday to gameplan for a potential SEC Championship game vs. Georgia and met with Carter and Ole Miss chancellor later in the afternoon and into the evening. An apparent "sticking point" was Kiffin's desire to coach the Rebels in the CFP.

A 10 a.m. ET team meeting Sunday was pushed back to 2 p.m. as Ole Miss and LSU fans awaited news.

On Fox Big Noon Kickoff, Bruce Feldman reported Saturday morning LSU offered Kiffin a seven-year deal, "in the neighborhood of $100 million."

"I talked to LSU sources this morning, and they are very confident that Lane Kiffin is going to come to Baton Rouge and accept this Tigers job."

Feldman said the allure of coaching a program that has seen three of its past four coaches win national titles recently may be "too tempting" for Kiffin to pass up.

Kiffin is in the final stages of his sixth season and has led the Rebels to a bowl game in each season since arriving in 2020. The Rebels missed a bowl in the four seasons before Kiffin arrived.

Ole Miss was paying Kiffin $9 million, according to a report from the USA TODAY Sports network. It ranked as the 10th-highest salary for a coach nationally.

Kiffin has previously been coach at Tennessee , USC, Florida Atlantic and Ole Miss. He was also the coach of the Oakland Raiders and an assistant under Nick Saban at Alabama and has built his reputation as an elite offensive mind and transfer portal recruiter.

How much does Lane Kiffin owe Ole Miss to leave

Lane Kiffin's contract calls for a $4 million penalty to end the pact before Dec. 31, 2025.

Lane Kiffin record at Ole Miss

Kiffin has turned the Rebels into a college football power player since arriving in Oxford. He has led Ole Miss to New Year's Six bowl games in 2021 and 2023.

• 2020: 5-5 (Covid)

• 2021: 10-3 (Sugar Bowl)

• 2022: 8-5 (Texas Bowl)

• 2023: 11-2 (Peach Bowl)

• 2024: 10-3 (Gator Bowl)

• 2025: 11-1

Clarion Ledger Ole Miss reporter Sam Hutchens contributed to this story.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lane Kiffin leaves Ole Miss for LSU football job, won't coach in CFP