Ahead of an SEC showdown against Oklahoma, Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin addressed rumors of him potentially leaving the Rebels for another job.
“He’s going to talk to them about it and say: ‘Hey, this is what happens when you win,” ESPN sideline reporter Molly McGrath revealed last week. “This is a compliment to our players, our staff and our entire program.’ He wants to talk to his players about it because there’s so many new guys on their team this year that haven’t dealt with it before.”
That was in direct response to the opening at Florida after the Gators fired head coach Billy Napier. However, just a week later another high-profile SEC job opened up when LSU opted to fire head coach Brian Kelly following the Tigers loss to the Texas A&M Aggies.
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Now with two of the biggest jobs in college football open, ESPN’s Pete Thamel suggested it’s difficult to imagine Kiffin coaching at Ole Miss in 2026.
“Right now, it’s hard to imagine Lane Kiffin coaching at Ole Miss next year,” Thamel said. “The opportunity at either LSU or Florida is too big… It’s going to be a fascinating race here for Lane Kiffin and to see how he handles it with a playoff team.”
Legendary Alabama head coach Nick Saban isn’t so sure. In a conversation with college football insider Chris Low, Saban revealed what could make Kiffin’s job at Ole Miss more appealing than leaving for either Florida or LSU.
“Jobs that weren’t great jobs before are now. Lane is the first name up for Florida and the first name up for LSU, but I think you can have a long debate on whether either one of those jobs is actually better than the job he has now because he has some guys over there at Ole Miss that give him pretty much whatever he wants from a roster standpoint,” Saban said.
“Maybe you’ve got alumni who are passionate about football, but are they willing to invest what you have to invest now to win? Because a lot of people don’t believe in this [expletive].”
Ole Miss currently sits as the No. 7 team in the nation with its only loss coming to No. 5 Georgia. Kiffin and company close out the regular season against South Carolina, The Citadel, Florida and Mississippi State – none of which are currently ranked.
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