New head coach said Monday at his introductory news conference that he will not coach the Tigers in their upcoming bowl game.
Instead, Kiffin said, interim coach will guide LSU through that matchup.
“(Wilson and I) have spent a lot of time together the last 24 hours that I've been here,” Kiffin said, “and so I've made the decision that he's gonna still stay in that role as the head coach of that team for the bowl game.”
Wilson is in his second stint at LSU. He worked on coach Les Miles’ staff from 2010-2015, then rejoined the Tigers in 2022 to serve as Brian Kelly’s associate head coach and running backs coach. When Kelly was fired on Oct. 26, LSU elevated him to interim coach for the season’s last four games.
The Tigers went 2-2 over that stretch. They beat Arkansas and Western Kentucky at home but lost to Alabama and Oklahoma on the road.
On Sunday, after Kiffin flew down to Baton Rouge and rode to LSU’s football operations building, he was spotted meeting with Wilson inside the LSU head coach’s office.
Kiffin said on Monday that he was “still in the process” of figuring out what his might look like. Ole Miss coaches and front-office staffers, including offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Charlie Weis Jr., accompanied him on his flight from Oxford, Mississippi, on Sunday.
LSU is also expected to strongly consider retaining defensive coordinator and other defensive coaches through the transition, sources have told The Advocate.
Wilson worked on Kiffin’s Tennessee staff in 2009.
Wilson Alexander contributed to this report.
