2 months later, Pete Golding responds to Dabo Swinney's tampering rant
Two months after Clemson's Dabo Swinney publicly accused Pete Golding of tampering in a 20-minute rant, the Ole Miss coach recounted the acquisition of linebacker Luke Ferrelli from his perspective. Then, 20 days later, he transferred to Ole Miss.
Two months after Clemson's Dabo Swinney publicly accused Pete Golding of tampering in a 20-minute rant , the Ole Miss coach recounted the acquisition of linebacker Luke Ferrelli from his perspective. “There’s two sides to every story,” Golding said Tuesday. Ferrelli, a freshman linebacker from Cal, landed with Clemson via the transfer portal in early January.
He began classes and team meetings. Then, 20 days later, he transferred to Ole Miss. “He came on an official visit right prior to the Fiesta Bowl, and I told him, ‘Hey, I want you to be our green-dot Mike, but right now, we've got a green-dot Mike.
And that spot’s not going to be available until, you know, we have one available,’” Golding recalled. That job belonged to TJ Dottery, a junior linebacker whose helmet featured a small green dot on the back, signifying he was the chosen one with a direct communicator in his helmet where he could listen to coaches on the sideline or in the booth. It was Dottery's job to then communicate with the defense.
That job became available weeks later, when the linebacker followed coach Lane Kiffin to LSU. “I said, ‘But right now there ain’t a spot available. So, if that spot becomes available, it’s yours,'” Golding continued.