The Lane Kiffin scenario that Ole Miss fans aren't thinking about that could rock Oxford
Ole Miss fans tend to get a bit prickly when you suggest that Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin won't be in Oxford for long. I get it. Kiffin has revitalized the program after a couple of down years in the wake of the Hugh Freeze firing in 2017. Ole Miss won 10 regular season games […]
Ole Miss fans tend to get a bit prickly when you suggest that Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin won't be in Oxford for long.
I get it. Kiffin has revitalized the program after a couple of down years in the wake of the Hugh Freeze firing in 2017.
Ole Miss won 10 regular season games last season under Kiffin — the best regular season in program history. Rebels fans don't want to think about starting over.
But I don't think we can ignore Kiffin's past. He's always looking for the next big thing. When you combine the nomad aspect of his personality with his growing disdain for the new landscape of college football (NIL deals), it's easy to see why he would be interested in leaving Ole Miss for a job with better resources.
“The first question is the keys to NIL and how you do well with that," said Kiffin last week at SEC Media Days while discussing changes in college football. "You have [to have] really good boosters. That’s how you do well at it…I said one day, you legalized cheating, so get ready for the people that have the most money to get players. Now you have it, it is what it is."
When Kiffin potentially leaving Ole Miss has been discussed, it's been centered around the polarizing head coach taking another college job. Auburn, if Bryan Harsin leaves after this season, has been a popular suggestion for Kiffin.
But what if Kiffin wants to get out of college football?
Kiffin's first head coaching job was with the Oakland Raiders way back in 2007. He was unceremoniously fired by the late Al Davis. But that was a bizarre situation that had more to do with the relationship between Kiffin and Davis than Kiffin's coaching ability.
The former Tennessee Vols/USC head coach hasn't returned to the NFL since his time with the Raiders, but this might be the perfect time to make that move. If Kiffin is truly growing frustrated with NIL deals and the added stress they bring, then why not leave those problems behind?
I think we all forget that Kiffin grew up around the NFL. When he was 8 years old, his dad, Monte, took a job with the Green Bay Packers. Monte then spent the next 26 years in the NFL. The NFL is part of who Kiffin is as a "football guy".
No one really knows what Kiffin will do. It really depends on what opportunities are out there after the 2022 season. But if an NFL team wants to chat with Kiffin about a head coaching vacancy, I have a hard time believing he wouldn't give it some serious thought.
Featured image via Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
