Ole Miss reportedly gives Lane Kiffin deadline to decide future
By David Wasson
Published:
The Ole Miss Rebels are on the verge of a first-ever spot in the College Football Playoff, and the school would like coach Lane Kiffin to decide on his future – before the Egg Bowl on Nov. 28 (Noon ET, ESPN).
The ultimatum, reported by The Athletic, comes as Kiffin and Ole Miss (10-1 overall, 8-1 SEC) are off during Week 13. Kiffin is considered a candidate for open jobs at both Florida and LSU.
Multiple reports also indicated that LSU sent a private plane Monday for Kiffin’s family to visit Baton Rouge, and that the Kiffins took a similar trip Sunday to Gainesville – though the coach reportedly was not on either trip.
Kiffin has been a target of both Florida and LSU after the Gators fired Billy Napier on Oct. 19 and LSU controversially dismissed Brian Kelly on Oct. 26. Rebels fans chanted “We Want Lane” during the closing moments of the 7th-ranked Rebels’ 34-24 victory over Florida in Oxford on Saturday night.
“I love what we’re doing here,” Kiffin said to reporters after the Florida game. “Today was awesome. To even talk about it right now would be so disrespectful to our players and how well they played today. We’ve got a lot of things going here. Doing really well, and I love it here.”
Kiffin has amassed a 54-19 record in 6 seasons at Ole Miss, and he is 115-53 across 14 collegiate coaching seasons at Tennessee, USC, FAU and Ole Miss.
Ole Miss is idle in Week 13. The Egg Bowl is set to be played on Nov. 28.
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.
