LSU football's Frank Wilson reveals why he left for Ole Miss

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LSU football interim head coach Frank Wilson takes the field with the Tigers for the final time on Saturday night as LSU faces Houston in the Kinder’s Texas Bowl. After the game, Wilson will be off to begin his new role at Ole Miss.

Wilson is a Louisiana native finishing his second stint in Baton Rouge. He worked under Les Miles from 2010-15. When LSU hired Brian Kelly in 2021, Wilson was one of Kelly’s first hires. He rose to prominence as a high school coach in New Orleans and few understand the state of football in Louisiana better than Wilson.

When Lane Kiffin got to Baton Rouge last month, there were questions about Wilson’s future on the staff. He was a candidate to be retained, but Kiffin wanted to bring Kevin Smith, his running backs coach at Ole Miss. That was going to make it tough to find a spot for Wilson, and ultimately, Wilson swapped places with Smith.

Wilson met with the media ahead of LSU’s Texas Bowl matchup with Houston and discussed the process that led to his departure from Baton Rouge.

“We talked about ways that it could work out. Coach Kiffin was absolutely awesome the entire time, and wanting to try to find a way to work it out. We didn’t come to that resolution, so there were other opportunities out there,” Wilson said.

Wilson mentioned his relationship with Ole Miss head coach Pete Golding goes back many years. When Wilson was the head coach at UTSA, he hired Golding to lead his defense. It’s what eventually got Golding noticed by Alabama’s Nick Saban, leading to Golding’s SEC rise.

“When the opportunity came, (Golding) extended himself to me, and I thought it was a great fit for myself and my family,” Wilson said.

Wilson was asked if he had a chance to stay at LSU in a different role, not coaching running backs.

“We just couldn’t come to a conclusion, but all those things were on the table. We had options on the table,” Wilson said.

Wilson, who worked with Kiffin at Tennessee in 2009, praised LSU’s new head coach.

“Coach (Kiffin) was awesome. I had no qualms with Coach Kiff, and he’s going to do an outstanding job. He’ll assemble a great staff. He’ll do fantastic,” Wilson said.

LSU football bowl game schedule

LSU football vs. Houston is slated for kickoff at 8:15 p.m. CT on Saturday, Dec. 27. ESPN will televise the game. LSU is designated as the visiting team.

This article originally appeared on LSU Wire: LSU football’s Frank Wilson reveals why he left for Ole Miss

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