Ole Miss associate head coach Derrick Nix is jumping ship to be the offensive coordinator under former Ole Miss head coach Hugh Freeze at Auburn.
Auburn had reportedly been in contact with Nix for a position on Freeze’s staff for quite some time.
Despite Lane Kiffin’s trolling on social media insinuating that Nix was content in Oxford, the Atalla, Ala. native decided to make the move to the plains for a job promotion after 16 years of coaching for the Rebels.
Nix, a standout running back at Southern Miss, began his career at Ole Miss in 2008 as running backs coach where he served for 12 seasons before being tabbed as wide receivers coach. He was later promoted to assistant head coach in 2022 and associate head coach for the 2023 season.
Kiffen even allowed Nix to serve as head coach during the team’s first scrimmage of fall camp and blasted major college football conferences for their lack of minority head coaches.
“We are grateful to Coach Nix and express our gratitude to Derrick and his family for their invaluable contributions and dedication to the success that we have achieved at Ole Miss,” Kiffin wrote on X. “Acknowledging the opportunity to become a first-time play-caller with full-time playcalling opportunities as Offensive Coordinator at Auburn University, we extend our sincere well-wishes to the Nix family in this new endeavor.”
Thanks to @DerrickDNix for 16 great years. pic.twitter.com/VmpJcagu2V
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) January 17, 2024
Kiffin’s line about Nix having playcalling duties at Auburn appears to be a jab at Freeze, who recently announced that he would be calling offensive plays in the 2024 campaign after a lackluster showing in his debut season as the Tigers’ head coach.
As for Ole Miss, the program will conduct a national search to land its next replacement. Former Rebels wide receiver, now private athletic trainer Mike Espy has publicly expressed interest in the job.
