Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin expects to get Otis Reese on the field this week in the Egg Bowl, and is thankful that the Georgia transfer defensive back was cleared by the NCAA.

“He’s a good player… many players would have given up by now but he never did. Been working hard on scout team,” Kiffin said.

Kiffin on the SEC coaches media teleconference shared how well he thought Will Rogers played last week at Georgia.

“Played well against a really good defense that has given a lot of people programs,” Kiffin said. Played like a veteran even though he’s young… Mike always does a good job with his quarterbacks, regardless of their ratings.”

Kiffin shared that Mississippi State coach Mike Leach has had a relationship with his father, Monte Kiffin, and it dates back to when Leach was at Texas Tech and Kiffin at Southern Cal.

“He would call a lot and asked about our practice plan,” Kiffin said. “Wanted insight into how Coach (Pete) Carroll did things.”

Kiffin said he’s looked at the Air Raid offense that Leach uses, but, “It’s so unique, it’s tough to take pieces of it.”

Finally, Kiffin revealed that mashed potatoes and gravy are his go-to Thanksgiving Day food. But he was also asked to rank the holiday with others.

“I haven’t thought about it or ranked them,” Kiffin said. “Mike is good at that, he will give you a good answer on that stuff. But how can you not go Christmas?”