Latest Ole Miss Rebels’ news continues to prove Pete Golding is the real Portal King, not Lane Kiffin

Pete Golding landing talents like Carius Curne, Jay Crawford, and Michai Boireau while retaining Kewan Lacy and others is impressive

Travis May, Tyler Forness
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The Ole Miss Rebels are turning into something that not even Lane Kiffin could have predicted. Pete Golding, Trinidad Chambliss, and the Rebels are just one game away from playing for a national championship, and the momentum is still building toward making it a repeatable feat.

Yes, Ole Miss is still waiting on hearing back on Chambliss’ waiver to return for one more year, but all of the latest news from play retention to major transfer portal wins suggests that the Rebels are here to stay at the top of college football.

Bringing back Trinidad Chambliss, Kewan Lacy, and most key stars is huge for Ole Miss

There were (apparently baseless) rumors floating for weeks about Chambliss, Lacy, and other key Ole Miss players eventually leaving to follow Kiffin to LSU. Exactly zero players have announced that they’re doing so (as of this writing). Instead, Chambliss and Lacy have doubled down with new deals for 2026. And they’re not the only ones.

Star hybrid defender (mostly linebacker) Suntarine Perkins and other critical defenders will be coming back for 2026, too. It’s clear that Golding and this staff have inspired this entire roster to believe they are building something special. There may be a couple more declarations for the draft and perhaps a transfer or two once the College Football Playoff wraps up, but having so many important talents committing to the future should ensure a bright 2026 outlook.

Critical transfer portal wins could take Rebels back to College Football Playoff in 2026

Not only are the Ole Miss Rebels retaining their most important talents, but Golding is proving to be the true Portal King this offseason, not Kiffin. The Rebels quickly signed top-notch cornerback Jay Crawford from Auburn and highly productive linebacker Keaton Thomas of Baylor.

Then, knowing the defense is where the team needs to take a step forward in 2026 if Ole Miss is going to win next year’s national championship, Goldings’ staff brought in Jonathan Maldonado (edge rusher) from Nevada, Jehiem Oatis (defensive line) from Colorado, and perhaps most importantly, Michai Boireau (defensive line) from the Florida Gators.

All of Ole Miss’ transfer portal wins are huge, but Boireau seriously could reshape the Rebels’ defensive front. He played a limited role in 2024, but grew into an extremely important interior run-stopper and havoc-creator for the Gators in 2025.

He missed some time early in the season, but still wreaked wild havoc, pushing the pile consistently throughout the season. He didn’t log a ton of stats, but what Boireau does is take out two offensive linemen on multiple gaps on every single play. I asked our Florida beat writer, Tyler Forness, about him, and here’s what he had to say:

“Michai Boireau was one of the emerging stars on the interior for the Florida Gators this past season. He started all nine games he played, and was a solid player in all phases. The son of former Minnesota Vikings second-round pick Michael Boireau, he’s the ideal modern-day nose tackle at 6-4 and 349 lbs with plus movement skills. This past season, Boireau got nine pressures and 2.0 sacks, and the game-winning interception against Mississippi State when he dropped into coverage. The Rebels got a really good two-down player.”

Boireau and the entire defensive haul that the Ole Miss Rebels have already locked in via the transfer portal should bring their defensive performance up closer to even with their offensive firepower.

However, the portal wins haven’t been limited just to defense. The Rebels also added former top-100 overall recruit offensive tackle Carius Curne, stealing him away from Kiffin and the LSU Tigers (who have now lost 25 players to the portal).

Winning top-tier raw talents like Curne in the offensive trenches, reloading the defense with top transfers at every level, bringing back the vast majority of the team’s top players, and adding key high school recruit talents at specific positions is the perfect winning formula in today’s college football.

Ole Miss is succeeding at every facet of roster building. It’s winning on the field, now at the highest levels. Golding is the Portal King, and Ole Miss is here to stay at the top of the sport. Rebels fans should rejoice knowing they have an exciting future to celebrate.

We’ll be back with more Ole Miss Rebels coverage here at A to Z Sports soon! Follow me (@FF_TravisM) and A to Z Sports (@AtoZSportsNFL) on X for all the latest football news!

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