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By Nelson Espinal
Contributing Sports Reporter
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LSU head coach Lane Kiffin has decided on whether or not members of his coaching staff can join Ole Miss for the College Football Playoffs.
The break-up between Kiffin and the Rebels played out in an ugly fashion, as the school refused to let him coach in the playoffs after he announced his intention to join LSU.
Ole Miss and LSU are heated rivals and conference adversaries in the hyper-competitive SEC.
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Rather than risk letting Kiffin poach talent or gain any advantage for next season, the Rebels decided to promote defensive coordinator Pete Golding to the full-time head coach role to provide stability and continuity amid a National Championship pursuit.
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More than a week ago, Kiffin announced his decision, and multiple coaches boarded the plane out of Oxford to Louisiana, signaling their intent to join the head coach at LSU.
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Among those staff members was offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr., who Kiffin later allowed to rejoin Ole Miss and help them in their playoff push.
On Monday, per a new report from ESPN's Pete Thamel, tight ends coach Joe Cox, wide receiver coach George McDonald, assistant quarterback coach Dane Stevens, and slot wide receiver coach Sawyer Jordan have all joined Ole Miss after Kiffin approved their return.
On the day of Kiffin's decision, reports surfaced that he was giving Ole Miss staff members an ultimatum: join him at LSU now or miss out on the chance to make the move.
Before boarding his LSU-bound plane, Kiffin dispelled that notion, claiming that it was a "narrative."
"Someone pumped a narrative in that there was an ultimatum to coaches or something," Kiffin said. "There was nothing. Every coach has their own decision to make, and I would never give them an ultimatum like that. Those are all their own individual decisions."
Whether or not the reports are accurate, Kiffin has become an undisputed villain in college football for his handling of the entire coaching carousel. However, his willingness to let the LSU coaching staff join Ole Miss in the postseason could be a small step on a long road to becoming a popular figure again.
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