Pete Golding's Ole Miss formula starts with prioritizing intangibles

Pete Golding was asked about bringing in transfers to Ole Miss. The Rebels defensive coordinator went on a lengthy explanation about what the coaching staff looks for from new players and it could have related to high school recruits just as easily as transfer portal players.

Here’s a little insight to top prospects as to what Golding – and probably many other Power Four coaches out there – are looking for.

“The big part for us is football IQ,” Golding said. “Everybody can watch the tape. The big thing in recruiting right now is there are some people who love football and there are some people who love what football can do for them.

“The paycheck is good and the car is good and the condo is better and I’m going to the country club with the coaches and all those things but at the end of the day when the (stuff) gets hard, they don’t love football and they start running from it.

“That’s our biggest thing in the evaluation process, it’s not the tape. It’s really who they are. Do they love football and do they have a high football IQ and are they going to be a good teammate?”

Ole Miss has a top-20 recruiting class and a lot of elite defensive players have picked the Rebels, one reason being their relationship with Golding.

Through the recruiting process, the players got to know him and he got to know them because tape is important but getting a feel for who they are as people – and how that will translate on the field – is the biggest deal.

“What stood out was the coaching and how he harps on the little things because he knows it can make a difference in a big game,” said three-star cornerback commit Iverson McCoy from Tupelo, Miss.

“We did talk about my love for the game and how I want to break everything down and see why this is happening here and what the reason for it is and just wanting to know what everyone is doing.”

Three-star safety Nascar McCoy said: “Pete is an amazing guy. During the recruiting process and through it all I feel like, I don’t necessarily look toward my recruiting process before what I have going on present day. I’m more focused on being there for my team and being a team-first guy before I get up there and show those guys the exact same traits.”

Golding had some interesting comments about what Ole Miss looks for in transfer portal additions, too.

Ole Miss’ defensive coordinator said often in the portal there are former five-star prospects and he wants to know why they weren’t playing elsewhere. Was it speed, athletic ability, did they not have a high enough football IQ?

The Rebels, he said, are not going to take players who didn’t start at their previous school. If they couldn’t cut it there, they probably wouldn’t be able to cut it at Ole Miss.

Experience matters, big-game experience matters more, the biggest focus is on SEC transfers so the moment is never too big. 

“I look at SEC (transfers) first,” Golding said. “They’ve been in that stadium, they’re not going to take a picture when they get there. They’ve been in big moments, they’ve been in bowl games so that’s just the next game when you get there.

“This is the best league in college football so if they’re starting in this league and we can get them, great.”

Tape evaluation is important but that’s the easy part, Golding said. What’s more crucial – and only can be determined with face-to-face interactions – is what’s the football IQ, how fast does someone process, can he change systems and still be an impactful player.

More than anything, though, is whether he’s a good culture fit.

“We put a lot on our players when we bring a guy in on an OV and they’re hanging out with them, we get their feedback before we’re ever going to take a guy,” Golding said.

“They’ve actually hung out with them outside of this building and saw some true colors and say, ‘Hey, is this going to be a good teammate and somebody you want to go to war with, or not?’ We get a lot of feedback from those guys.”

All that stood out to Carmelow Reed during the recruiting process but more than anything, Golding making it clear he wanted to be at Ole Miss for the long haul sold the three-star defensive lineman from Richton Park (Ill.) Rich Township to leave the Midwest and follow Golding to Oxford.

“What stood out was his loyalty to the school,” Reed said. “He was telling me that he’s cemented at Ole Miss. He loves the people and loves to be a coach there.”