Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney called out Ole Miss coach Pete Golding by name over allegations that the Rebels tampered with one of his players.
Swinney accused Ole Miss of tampering with transfer linebacker Luke Ferrelli, who had committed to join Clemson from Cal in early January. On Jan. 22, however, Ferrelli re-entered the portal and joined Ole Miss.
Swinney made clear that Clemson intends to complain to the NCAA about tampering. The Clemson coach then provided evidence that Ole Miss coach Pete Golding personally texted Ferrelli to ask the linebacker about his buyout after Ferrelli had already signed with Clemson.
Dabo Swinney calls out Ole Miss coach Pete Golding directly, saying that Golding texted Luke Ferrelli during his 8 a.m. class at Clemson.
— Grace Raynor (@gmraynor) January 23, 2026
"I know you're signed, what's the buyout?"
Swinney said Ferrelli informed Clemson of the contact, and that Clemson GM Jordan Sorrells reached out to Ole Miss counterpart Austin Thomas threatening to turn Ole Miss in if the contact did not stop. While Thomas apparently was willing to do so, Swinney alleged that Golding kept it up anyway.
Per Dabo Swinney, Clemson talked to Ole Miss GM Austin Thomas and made it clear that if Ole Miss didn't stop communicating with Ferrelli, Clemson was going to turn them in. Austin Thomas reportedly said he wanted no part of this but that "Pete Golding just 'does what he does.'"
— Grace Raynor (@gmraynor) January 23, 2026
Swinney offered up a whole accounting of the situation. He claimed that Golding had both Trinidad Chambliss and Jaxson Dart reach out to Ferrelli about a transfer, and compared the situation to “having an affair on your honeymoon.”
Tampering fears and complaints are not necessarily uncommon in the current era of college football, but it is certainly unusual for one coach to call out a counterpart by name. Swinney obviously wants something to be done about Golding and is willing to air his complaints publicly as well as privately.
As Swinney noted, there is some irony in Ole Miss facing these accusations, as they were very worried about former coach Lane Kiffin tampering with their players during the College Football Playoff. It is widely acknowledged that these things happen, but actually proving it and getting offenders punished is very difficult.
Swinney has long been opposed to using the transfer portal heavily, though he has started to compromise on that recently. This is a big reason why he hates it.
