Ole Miss expected to hire elite assistant away from LSU

Frank Wilson. Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Ole Miss expected to hire elite assistant away from Lane Kiffin, LSU

By Andrew Kulha | Last updated Dec 17, 2025 8:33 PM ET

When the LSU Tigers fired Brian Kelly in late October, they trusted running backs coach Frank Wilson to serve as the team's interim head coach.

Lane Kiffin is now the head coach in Baton Rouge, though, and it is sort of interesting to see how things are playing out for Wilson.

He's going to coach in LSU's Texas Bowl game against the Cougars, but ultimately, Wilson is expected to end up at the school that Kiffin unceremoniously dumped before the College Football Playoff.

Reports coming out of both Baton Rouge and Oxford are suggesting that Wilson is going to be the running backs coach for Pete Golding and the Ole Miss Rebels next season.

This will be a return to Oxford for Wilson, who coached the Rebels from 2005 to 2007 as running backs and special teams coach.

NEW: Ole Miss is hiring LSU interim head coach Frank Wilson to its staff, @PeteNakos reports.https://t.co/hLyLqmxxk0 pic.twitter.com/tFb4BBg5At
— On3 (@On3sports) December 17, 2025

Ole Miss Rebels are getting a great assistant coach in Frank Wilson

Wilson's future in the Kiffin era was uncertain, so this may not go down as a loss for LSU. He could have been gone anyhow.

This move will go down as a huge win for Ole Miss, though, because Franklin is known as one of the best assistant coaches and recruiters in college football.

Notable running backs that he's recruited and worked with in past stints include Leonard Fournette, Alfred Blue, Spencer Ware and Jeremy Hill.

He was the head coach at UTSA from 2016 to 2019 and the head coach at McNeese State in 2020 and 2021.

There are few positional coaches more qualified in college football. Throw in his abilities as a recruiter, and he's going to go down as a homerun hire for Pete Goulding and Ole Miss.

Andrew Kulha

Andrew Kulha is probably the only sports writer you know who also doubles as a mortician. Spooky! @KulhaSports

More must-reads: