The Lane Kiffin saga appears set to come to an end later this week, and it looks like he’ll be moving from Ole Miss — a decision FOX Sports lead college football analyst Joel Klatt doesn’t agree with.
On the latest episode of “The Joel Klatt Show,” he shared that he heard LSU is in the lead for the Kiffin sweepstakes.
“I’ve been all over the map and partly because the information has been all over the map,” Klatt said. “There have been moments when I thought he’s definitely going to stay at Miss. There’s been moments [when] I’ve been instructed he is undoubtedly going to Florida. Now, there [have] been moments that I have been instructed he is undoubtedly going to LSU.
“That is sort of the place the data stands. Fairly dependable that LSU is the front-runner. Clearly, that is coming to a head as a result of they’re saying when the choice goes to be made.”
As Klatt alluded to, there have been a number of developments during the last month surrounding Kiffin’s teaching future. Each LSU and Florida fired their respective head coaches in October, with Kiffin rising as a prime candidate for each jobs. Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter additionally stated across the time of these firings that the college was seeking to give Kiffin a Curt Cignetti-like extension, with the Indiana coach receiving a contract that made him the third-highest-paid coach within the nation in October.
Does Lane Kiffin want to depart Ole Miss to win a nationwide championship? 🤔
Throughout Ole Miss’ bye this previous week, the rumors about Kiffin’s future appeared to hit a boiling level. A number of stories surfaced about his household taking trips to both Florida’s and LSU’s campuses. A report from Yahoo Sports activities on Saturday stated that LSU was preparing to offer Kiffin a seven-year deal with a total value of at least $90 million.
Following every week filled with rumors, Carter issued a statement that read a decision on Kiffin’s future would come after Ole Miss’ matchup towards Mississippi State on Friday.
On the backdrop of all of that is that Ole Miss seems set to make the College Football Playoff. It is 10-1 coming into Friday’s sport and was ranked sixth in the newest CFP ballot. The Rebels may also play within the SEC Championship Sport.
With Kiffin showing to be on the precipice of leaving a CFP contender on the peak of their season, Klatt questioned simply how efficient he’ll be at his subsequent job.
“Your credibility is your foreign money as a coach,” he stated. “How does Lane Kiffin go away Ole Miss in the midst of a playoff run and have any credibility at his subsequent place? I do not assume that he would. We will sit right here and lament the calendar and understand that like, this isn’t an amazing place for Lane to be in. I completely agree with that, but it surely’s additionally nonetheless as much as him.
“When you say sure to all the things, how are you going to be dedicated to something?”
Kiffin leaving Ole Miss for an additional job can be an unprecedented transfer within the CFP period. Kalen DeBoer is the one coach to depart for an additional program instantly after taking his group to the CFP, however even he left Washington for Alabama following the nationwide championship.
As Ole Miss seemingly controls its personal path to the CFP, Klatt puzzled why Kiffin thinks he has to make the bounce in an effort to win a nationwide championship.
“I do not assume he has to go wherever to search out success,” Klatt stated. “This isn’t prefer it was. It was like, LSU would come open, and you are like, ‘I bought to go there if I wish to win on the prime finish.’ However guess what? The proof that you do not have to try this is Lane at Ole Miss. He’s the proof that you do not have to try this. He’s profitable on the prime finish at Ole Miss. He does not have to depart.
“Curt Cignetti is proving that at Indiana. He is No. 2 within the nation. No. 2 and will win a nationwide championship this yr. Joey McGuire is proving that at Texas Tech. You do not have to go there. You possibly can win on this period. Within the trendy period of faculty soccer, the match is extra vital than the brand in your hat as a result of you may win in the event you’ve bought the assist, which they do at Previous Miss. This isn’t a cash factor.”
Joel Klatt weighs in on saga between Lane Kiffin & Ole Miss: ‘It will be tougher to remain the longer this goes’
To Klatt’s level, Kiffin has helped Ole Miss change into a CFP contender since he turned its head coach in 2020. He has gone 54-19 in his six seasons on the helm because it simply missed the CFP in 2024. It completed ranked within the prime 12 in two of Kiffin’s different first 5 seasons at Ole Miss.
Whereas the Rebels have thrived underneath Kiffin, LSU hasn’t had the identical success. LSU is about to complete with a worse report than Ole Miss for the fourth time previously 5 seasons, with Brian Kelly getting fired because the Tigers’ head coach after shedding one other massive sport to Texas A&M in October.
On prime of the concerns Klatt has about Ole Miss and Kiffin’s popularity by the approaching transfer, he is simply as frightened in regards to the precedent this may set in faculty soccer.
“I’m involved for what that will imply for school soccer as a result of this is able to be like a automotive accident of epic proportions,” Klatt stated. “If he have been to depart after which not coach the CFP, he can be destroying the Ole Miss soccer group. These youngsters dedicated to him as a lot as they dedicated to Ole Miss. Then they dedicated to one another to realize one thing nice. They won’t excel within the playoffs with out him as their playcaller.
“If he leaves them, it isn’t simply the calendar’s fault as a result of he has company. He has company, and he does not have to depart.”
Need nice tales delivered proper to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!
