What did we say about the efforts by Ole Miss coaches, players and administrators to quiet the noise around Lane Kiffin’s coaching future?
We said they wouldn’t work, and they’re not.
The drama around Kiffin and whether he’ll leave Ole Miss for LSU (or Florida) or stay in Oxford is still one of the most talked about stories in sports right now.
The only thing that could’ve silenced the outside noise is a definitive statement on Kiffin’s future. Really, if the goal is total silence, the only way to achieve that would’ve been to announce Kiffin is staying at Ole Miss at Monday’s press conference.
That, of course, didn’t happen. So, now we get to interpret what was said and read the tea leaves.
Paul Finebaum’s reaction to Monday press conference
ESPN’s Paul Finebaum made his interpretation known Tuesday morning on ESPN’s Get Up.
“Well, it’s what he didn’t say. He didn’t say, ‘I definitely will be here and coach my team in the College Football Playoff‘. That is not difficult,” Finebaum said. “You can ask almost any coach who is in the College Football Playoff Poll right now and they will give you that answer.
“Kiffin nuanced it, which means one thing. He is likely to leave. Otherwise, he simply has to say, ‘I just agreed to a new deal with Ole Miss. I’ll be here the rest of my life. I’ll be making zillions of dollars‘. End of story.
“That would be a normal thing to think about, but it seems pretty obvious Ole Miss has told him you’re not going to stay. I think the distraction would be immense. He would be recruiting, trying to get players from his own team to leave with him.
“I think that would be a disaster. But, the idea of a coach leaving before the College Football Playoff? We are way, way in unprecedented territory here.”
Finebaum on best place for Kiffin
Finebaum was also asked where he thought the best place for Kiffin was. He answered, quickly, Ole Miss.
“That’s where he’s happy. How many times have you heard him say ‘Everything has finally gone my way.’ Kiffin has battled a lot of demons, and he’s overcome them. But he seems intent on leaving, and the reason is very simple. I don’t believe Lane Kiffin thinks he can win a national championship at Ole Miss,” Finebaum said.
“I don’t know why he doesn’t think that, considering where they are in the polls right now and the amount of money. But clearly, as he looks around, Florida seems like a slightly better fit, but LSU is the hot school.”
“LSU has won national championships under Saban, Les Miles, and even Ed Orgeron. They didn’t win one in four years under Brian Kelly. And that’s why they paid to get rid of him. So it seems like LSU right now is the hot team. It could change because we are dealing with Lane Kiffin.”
Taylor’s Take
Finebaum makes a great point. Wasn’t the whole point of The Many Lives of Lane Kiffin that he was finally at peace? It had people saying there’s no way he’s ever leaving Ole Miss. His family loves it there, he loves it there and they Ole Miss loves him.
Two months later, most people believe Kiffin is about to leave Ole Miss. So, maybe we forgot the golden rule about coaches.
When they say things like they’re happy and don’t want to leave or “I’m not going to be the next Alabama coach,” we should remember that they could be lying.
