Pete Golding explains rationale behind leaving Alabama for Ole Miss

After running Nick Saban’s defense at Alabama for the last four years, Pete Golding made a move to another SEC team this offseason — one appropriately coached by a fellow former Saban assistant. He’s now the defensive coordinator at Ole Miss under Lane Kiffin, preparing for his first year in Oxford.

Mississippi is familiar territory for Golding. He played safety at Division II Delta State and got his head coaching start there as a graduate assistant. He returned in 2010 as defensive coordinator before working his way up the ladder with stops at Southeastern Louisiana, Southern Miss and UTSA leading him to Tuscaloosa.

But when he got the opportunity to replace Chris Partridge and Maurice Crum, Golding said he saw it as a chance to do something special away from the field. He could bring his family back to Mississippi — and, for his wife, it’s a homecoming in multiple ways.

“My wife graduated from Ole Miss,” Golding said. “She was born and raised in Mississippi, my mom was born and raised in Mississippi, I played in Mississippi. This is my third stint in Mississippi. So when you can go somewhere that’s already had success and I think is very close to being elite year in and year out and feel like you can have an impact to help that, especially on your side of the ball, while still being somewhere that your wife wants to be, has always wanted to be and still do what you love to do, I think that’s special. I don’t think it happens a lot.

“And I enjoyed where I was at. I learned a ton. It had nothing to do with Alabama. This was strictly based on trying to be a better husband and better father.”

Golding was a hot topic of conversation around Alabama fans the last couple years, but Golding made it clear he left on his own volition. While family was a key factor in his decision, he also saw it as another step in his football journey.

The SEC was always the goal, and returning to Mississippi made it a perfect match.

“To me, having played Division II and coached in Division II, my goal was always to coach in the SEC,” Golding said. “I think you get so locked in sometimes to a career and you’re focused on the next step. It was D-II for me, and then it was I-AA, then it was mid-major and then it was SEC and then I’ll be a coordinator in the SEC.

“When you’re married and got three kids, I think sometimes you lose the value of what you’re really about. Having won national championships, a lot of SEC Championships and all that, I still wanted to go somewhere to where my family could be more involved.”