Marty Smith: ‘I can’t understand why Lane Kiffin would leave Ole Miss’
By David Wasson
Published:
Lane Kiffin finds himself in a maelstrom of attention across the country as perhaps the most sought-after coach in college football. While Kiffin has parried away overtures in years past and remained at Ole Miss, the allure of pedigree programs like Florida and LSU – along with financial riches – could see Kiffin bolt Oxford at the end of the season.
But not everyone is convinced Kiffin will leave Ole Miss, as Marty & McGee host Marty Smith took time Saturday morning to try and wrap his brain around potential reasons why Kiffin would drop the Rebels for either the Gators or Tigers job.
“Lane Kiffin is the prettiest girl at the dance. He is being mentioned at Florida and mentioned at LSU because he’s done such a fantastic job at Ole Miss,” Smith said to co-host Ryan McGee. “And brother, as I look at this, for the life of me I can’t understand why Lane would leave Ole Miss.”
Smith went on to point out that both the Florida and LSU fanbases are starving for a return to national championship glory – as the Gators won titles under Steve Spurrier and Urban Meyer, and the Tigers climbed the same mountain under Nick Saban, Les Miles and Ed Orgeron. But Smith also wondered aloud if the pay bump that Kiffin would theoretically recieve with such a move worth it?
“So if you are Lane Kiffin, who told Pat McAfee on television on the record ‘this ain’t about money for me’ and Lane makes $9 million a year right now, if Florida or LSU or whomever offered him $13.5 million a year – does that appreciably change the scope his life?” Smith said. “Yeah it is more money, but I don’t know that it does. So what is the allure? Is the allure a greater opportunity to win a national championship? Maybe. I don’t get it – because in an impossible league he has built a playoff-opportunity team in Oxford, Mississippi.”
An APSE national award-winning writer and editor, David Wasson has almost four decades of experience in the print journalism business in Florida and Alabama. His work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times and several national magazines and websites. He also hosts Gulfshore Sports with David Wasson, weekdays from 3-5 pm across Southwest Florida and on FoxSportsFM.com. His Twitter handle: @JustDWasson.
