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Ole Miss Loses Key Staff Member to SEC Rival LSU

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Levi Dombro | Last updated Jul 9, 2025 6:48 PM ET

The Ole Miss football program has been a well-oiled machine since head coach Lane Kiffin's arrival ahead of the 2020 college football season. The experienced coach has led the team to five straight bowl games and three seasons of 10 or more wins.

Given the state of college football, the Rebels' roster has looked different almost every season, but Kiffin and his staff have done an incredible job recruiting in the transfer portal. They are also starting to gain traction on the high school recruiting trail.

This offseason, Ole Miss had one of the top-rated classes of transfers in the entire country, and the 2026 high school class currently has 13 hard commits, four of which are four-star recruits.

Unfortunately, the Rebels' recruiting operation suffered a major blow on Monday. On3 Sports' Ben Garrett reported that a key staff member was leaving Ole Miss to join the LSU Tigers.

"Kelvin Bolden is leaving Ole Miss football to join rival LSU, Bolden confirmed to the Ole Miss Spirit via text message Monday night," Garrett wrote. "Bolden was Ole Miss’ Coordinator of Recruiting Strategy. He served as the Rebels’ primary in-state recruiter."

A move at this juncture in the offseason certainly turns some heads, as most staffs are set in stone just a month before the season. However, Bolden's move was the result of a minor falling out or not seeing eye-to-eye with coach Kiffin.

"Sources indicate Bolden wanted the Director of Player Personnel job currently held by Alex Brown. Sixth-year Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin declined," Garrett wrote. "Bolden is becoming the Senior Associate AD/Assistant GM for the Tigers."

Bolden was able to strike a promotion with the Rebels' SEC rival, so he will head to Baton Rouge for the 2025 season.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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