Sources: Ole Miss adds ex-Giants coach Judge

Chris Low, ESPN Senior WriterApr 3, 2024, 07:09 PM ET
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- College football reporter
- Joined ESPN.com in 2007
- Graduate of the University of Tennessee

Former New York Giants coach Joe Judge has joined Ole Miss‘ football staff, sources told ESPN on Wednesday, as Lane Kiffin continues to make key staff additions this offseason.

Judge was the Giants’ head coach in 2020 and 2021 before being fired and was with the New England Patriots the past two seasons, most recently as the assistant head coach under Bill Belichick in 2023. Kiffin has made an effort to bring in coaches with ties to Nick Saban and/or Belichick. Judge coached special teams under Saban at Alabama from 2009 to ’11 and spent 10 seasons working under Belichick in various roles, including special teams, quarterbacks and receivers.

A former player at rival Mississippi State, Judge is the second coach with Mississippi State ties to be hired this offseason by Ole Miss. Zach Arnett spent the 2023 season as Mississippi State’s head coach after arriving as defensive coordinator in 2020. Mississippi State promoted Arnett following the death of coach Mike Leach in December 2022 and then fired him in November after the team dropped to 4-6.

Some of the others Kiffin hired this offseason who have ties to Saban include tight ends coach Joe Cox and defensive analyst William Vlachos. Cox, a former Georgia quarterback, coached the Alabama tight ends the past two seasons. Vlachos was an All-SEC center at Alabama under Saban and part of two national championship teams. He later worked as an analyst under Saban during the time Kiffin was the Tide’s offensive coordinator.

Also this offseason, Kiffin brought in NFL veteran personnel director Mike Williams to be the Rebels’ senior director of player personnel and Billy Glasscock as the Rebels’ general manager. Glasscock was previously the player personnel director at Texas. Alex Brown was hired away from SMU to be Ole Miss’ director of scouting, and former Middle Tennessee star quarterback Brent Stockstill joined Ole Miss’ staff as an offensive analyst.

Judge, who spent the past 12 years in the NFL, is expected to serve in a senior analyst role at Ole Miss, which will undoubtedly tap into his special teams expertise.

A new proposal introduced last month by the NCAA Football Oversight Committee would, if passed, allow college football programs to have an unlimited number of staff members — not just the 10 assistant coaches and head coach — on the field coaching and providing instruction during practices and games.

Ole Miss Spirit was the first to report Judge’s hiring.