SEC Network analyst names Top 5 SEC hires of past five years

It’s talking season, with the long college football offseason upon us and March Madness soon ending. So all manner of topics are on the table. On Wednesday, ESPN analyst Peter Burns brought up an interesting one: the top SEC hires over the past five years.

Burns provided his list on Twitter, noting he wasn’t quite sure how to order them.

His picks?

Ole Miss football coach Lane Kiffin, LSU women’s basketball coach Kim Mulkey, LSU baseball coach Jay Johnson, Alabama basketball coach Nate Oats and Arkansas basketball coach Eric Musselman all made the cut for him.

Let’s take a look below at what each of these SEC hires has accomplished so far.

Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss Football Coach

Kiffin has been at Ole Miss for four years now, and he’s coming off his best season yet. The Rebels won 11 games in 2023, which included a Peach Bowl victory to close the year out.

Kiffin has twice topped the 10-win mark. He’s recruited well and utilized the NCAA transfer portal. And he might just have his best team yet in 2024, a potential playoff contender.

Kim Mulkey, LSU Women’s Basketball Coach

Mulkey is now at the tail end of her third season, and she has had massive early success with the Tigers. After taking over a team that won just nine games the year prior to her arrival, Mulkey immediately took LSU to 26 wins and an NCAA Tournament appearance.

She won a national title in her second year and has the Tigers poised to make another deep NCAA Tournament run, now into the Sweet 16. Mulkey has already won 90 games at LSU in just three years.

Jay Johnson, LSU Baseball Coach

The shortest-tenured of Peter Burns’ top SEC hires, Johnson is just now going into his third season with the Tigers. Like Mulkey, he had immediate success, especially in Year 2.

LSU won 40 games in his first season in charge, then improved to 54 wins in his second season as the Tigers won the national championship. LSU is once again a favorite to reach Omaha this spring.

Nate Oats, Alabama Basketball Coach

Oats is into his fifth season at Alabama and it has the potential to be the best one yet. After missing the NCAA Tournament in his first season, Oats has made it four straight times. The Crimson Tide have reached the Sweet 16 in three of the last four years, too, including this season.

The high-water mark for wins so far is 31, accomplished last season. Oats has been a steady presence for a program establishing itself as a consistent threat in March.

Eric Musselman, Arkansas Basketball Coach

Like Oats, Musselman just finished up his fifth season in charge of the Razorbacks’ program. Unlike Oats, this was not his most successful season. The Hogs finished with a losing record and missed the postseason.

Every other year, though, has resulted in at least 20 wins and an NCAA Tournament appearance. Arkansas has been to two Elite Eights and three Sweet 16s under Musselman.