BREAKING: LSU is hiring Ole Miss Coordinator of Recruiting Strategy Kevin Bolden

BREAKING: LSU is hiring Ole Miss Coordinator of Recruiting Strategy Kevin Bolden, sBolden will be LSU Football’s Assistant General Manager.

Bolden, a Mississippi native with deep roots in the region’s football landscape, brings a wealth of experience to Baton Rouge. His tenure at Ole Miss since 2022 saw him play a pivotal role in shaping the Rebels’ recruiting efforts, helping secure top-20 high school classes and fostering key relationships with in-state talent. Notable recruits under his watch include five-star linebacker Suntarine Perkins and five-star wide receiver Caleb Cunningham, both from Mississippi.

The hire reunites Bolden with Austin Thomas, LSU’s Senior Associate Athletic Director for Football Administration, who previously worked with him at Ole Miss. Thomas, who served as the Rebels’ Football Chief of Staff before joining LSU in January 2024, has been instrumental in recruiting familiar faces from Oxford to Baton Rouge. This marks the fourth Ole Miss staff member Kelly has brought on board in the past 18 months, following the likes of Preston Tiffany and Jai Choudhary.

Bolden’s move comes at a critical time for LSU, which has experienced recent turnover in its recruiting department, including the departure of Preston Tiffany to the Philadelphia Eagles. His new role as Assistant General Manager is expected to involve roster management, player valuations, and agent relations, aligning with the evolving demands of modern college football recruiting amid the transfer portal and NIL era.

At Ole Miss, Bolden’s departure leaves a void in Lane Kiffin’s staff, where he was regarded as one of the SEC’s top off-field recruiters. His ability to build relationships and navigate the competitive recruiting landscape in the South has been widely praised, and his shift to LSU is seen as a coup for the Tigers as they aim to strengthen their 2026 recruiting class, currently ranked No. 7 nationally.

Bolden expressed gratitude for his time at Ole Miss in a social media post, calling it “the best place I’ve ever worked,” but hinted at the difficulty of the decision to move. For LSU, the hire signals an aggressive push to maintain momentum in a key recruiting region and build on the program’s recent success in the transfer portal.

As the 2025 season approaches, all eyes will be on how Bolden’s expertise translates to LSU’s on-field performance and recruiting dominance in the SEC. This move underscores the intensifying competition for talent in college football, with LSU leveraging its proximity and personnel connections to gain an edge over rivals like Ole Miss.