Lan Kiffin completes coaching staff, adds special teams coach and brother Chris as co-DC |Tiger Rag

GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor LSU's new football coach Lane Kiffin has completed most of his practices at Ole Miss West.The new hire is special teams coordinator Joe Houston from Florida on Monday afternoon.Houston coached in Florida for the past two years.Other positions during his career include one season below

Editor Glan Glan Gilba at Tiger Rage

LSU's new football coach, Lane Kiffin, completed most of his Ole Miss West coaching staff.

There was a visit to special teams coordinator Joe Houston from Florida on Monday afternoon.Houston has coached at Florida the past two seasons.Other stops in his career include one season under Nick Saban at Alabama and three as a special teams stint with the New England Patriots under coach Bill Belichick.

LSU also confirmed the previously reported hiring of defensive line coach Sterling Lucas and made Kiffin's younger brother Chris Kiffin the line coach and defensive coordinator under returning coordinator Blake Baker.

Kiffin selected Baker from the former LSU staff along with three other defensive coaches - secondary coach Corey Raymond, safeties coach Jake Olsen and edge rushers coach Kevin Peoples.Olsen and Peoples coached under Baker at Missouri before coming to LSU after the 2023 season and made plenty of defenses after a disastrous 2023 according to defensive coordinator Matt House.

Raymond also returned to LSU before the 2024 season from Florida, where he coached cornerbacks and was an assistant coach in 2022 and 2023.A former LSU and NFL defensive back, Raymond coached LSU's defensive backs from 2012-21.

Chris Kiffin, 43, has been at LSU since his brother's arrival on Nov. 30. He coached linebackers at Ole Miss in 2025 before serving as a defensive analyst in 2024. Before that, he coached six seasons in the NFL — linebackers for Houston in 2023, Senland from 2020-2018.Defensive line and Francisco in 1919He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Ole Miss in 2005 under head coach Ed Orgeron and at Idaho in '06 prior to the 2007 season.

He was the assistant defensive coordinator at Nebraska in 2008 and '09 under head coach Bo Pelini, who was previously LSU's defensive coordinator.The younger Kiffin worked under his brother again in 2010 as an administrative assistant on defense when Lane was USC's head coach.In 2011, he coached the defensive line at Arkansas State.From 2012–16, Kiffin was the offensive line coach at Ole Miss.Defensive/recruiting coordinator for head coach Hugh Freeze.In 2017, Kiffin was his brother's defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Florida Atlantic.

LSU also named former Ole Miss assistant Lou Spanos as LSU's assistant defensive line coach and pass rush specialist.

Lucas joins the program after four seasons as the defensive backs and outside linebackers coach at South Carolina.Spanos and Kiffin join LSU's staff from Ole Miss. Spanos most recently worked as a defensive analyst for the Rebels and comes to LSU with 17 years of NFL experience.

In 2024, Lucas oversees the development of Kyle Kennard, who won the Bronko Nagurski Award as the best national defenseman.

Personnel additions include three defenses, one special teams and seven offenses.Eight of the 11 additions followed Kiffin from Ole Miss. All 11 have SEC experience and eight have NFL experience as players or coaches or both.

As reported earlier Monday, former Ole Miss coach Kevin Smith joined the LSU staff on Sunday as running backs coach and assistant coach.He will continue to assist the Ole Miss offense in the College Football Playoff, along with several other LSU assistants hired by Ole Miss.

According to previous reports, Charlie Weis Jr. will serve as LSU's offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach and continue to coach the University of Mississippi in the playoffs.Mississippi State (12-1) will face Georgia (12-1) in the second round of the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans on Jan. 1.

On November 30, Kiffin also transferred Joe Cox (tight ends/co-offensive coordinator), George McDonald (wide receivers/passing coordinator), Eric Wolford (offensive line), Sawyer Jordan (inside wide receiver) and Dane Stevens (defensive back) from his Ole Miss offensive staff to LSU.They will continue to coach the Rebels and make the playoffs after defeating Tulane in the first round on Saturday in Oxford.

Weiss, McDonald, Smith, Cox, Stevens and Jordan were part of the best regular season in program history under Kiffin in 2025, as the Rebels went 11-1 and reached the College Football Playoff.

In 2025, the Ole Miss offense averaged 38 points per game and led the SEC in yards per game (498.0), passing yards (312.4) and rushing touchdowns (36).Ole Miss scored 59 total offensive touchdowns this season, second in the league.

Ole Miss' offense was SEC Rookie of the Year Kevin Lacy, who ran for 1,366 yards and 21 touchdowns on All-America team Trinidad Chambliss.

As previously reported, Kiffin hired Kentucky native Eric Wolford as offensive line coach.Wolford also previously coached at Alabama under Saban.Stevens served as the offensive coordinator for West Georgia in 2024 and returned to Ole Miss in 2025 as a pass rusher in 2022-23.He served as a lead analyst and assistant quarterbacks coach for Kiffin and the Rebels.

Absent from Kiffin as previously reported are head/quarterbacks coach Frank Wilson, offensive line coach Brad Davis, game coordinator/tight ends coach Alex Atkins and tight end/coordinator/receivers Cortez Hankton.

Wilson, who replaced fired coach Brian Kelly as head coach on Oct. 26, will continue to coach the Tigers through bowl practice in preparation for the Texas Bowl against Houston on Saturday (8 p.m., ESPN).Davis, Atkins and Hankton also coached LSU through the bowl.The defensive coaches are Baker, Raymond, Olson and Peeples.

Kiffin did not retain defensive line coach Kyle Williams and is coaching LSU through the bowl game.LSU offensive coordinator Joe Sloan was fired on Oct. 27 and later named Kentucky's offensive coordinator under new coach Will Stein.

New additions to the LSU football coaching staff

Joe Cox-Co-Offensive Coordinator/Tight Ends

Joe Houston - Special Teams Coordinator

Sawyer Jordan - the most successful

Chris Kiffin - Defensive Coordinator/Linebacker

Sterling Lucas - Defensive Line

George McDonald - Passing Game Coordinator / Wide Receivers

Kevin Smith - Assistant Head Coach/Runners

Lou Spanos – Rush Specialist / Defensive Line Assistant

Dane Stevens – Quarterbacks

Charlie Weis Jr.- Offensive coordinator

Eric Wolford - Offensive Line

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