Pete Golding has earned a controversial reputation among college football coaches in the months after Ole Miss promoted him to head coach from his defensive coordinator post.The Rebels' acquisition of California transfer linebacker Luke Ferrelli turned heads across the college football world for the wrong reasons in January. Ferrelli had announced his commitment to Clemson and enrolled in classes there before flipping to Ole Miss, a move widely regarded as tampering.Conversely, Golding was heralded for his leadership of the Rebels in the 2026 College Football Playoff. Despite all of the outside noise stemming from Lane Kiffin's messy exit at the end of November, the Rebels remained poised throughout their run to the College Football Playoff semifinals.Former Alabama head coach and current ESPN College GameDay panelist Nick Saban is among those who think highly of Golding. He issued the first-year head coach a strong endorsement on the SEC Network during SEC Media Days, reflecting on their time together at Alabama."I think Pete is a ball guy. He's one of the best coaches that we had, and we've had some good ones that are having a lot success out there as head coaches," Saban said. "I think Pete is going to fit into that. He's very authentic, he's a good football guy, he knows personnel and he can recruit really well."When did Golding coach under Saban at Alabama?Alabama Defensive Coordinator Pete Golding coaches during a time out during the first half of the Citrus Bowl Jan. 1, 2020 in Orlando. [Staff Photo/Gary Cosby Jr.]