No. 6 Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin held his weekly press conference Monday to talk about last week’s game against The Citadel and preview this week’s game against Florida.
Here’s everything he said:
Opening statement…
All right, you know, good start to the week with the walkthrough in preparation. This next game on the schedule presents a lot of preparation problems. They do a great job schematically, extremely well-coached defense, and they’re as talented as anybody. They’ve got elite talent on both sides of the ball. You look at how they’ve played at times this year — this is the same team that was ahead of Georgia in the fourth quarter two weeks ago, and the same team that outplayed Texas and beat Texas earlier in the year. You guys have probably heard me refer to how every year there’s a “blackout game,” where one side just doesn’t play to its usual level — and I think last week’s Kentucky game was an outlier for them. Kentucky’s quarterback was on fire and made every play. We’ve got to be ready to play against a really dangerous team.
On Austin Simmons getting reps Saturday…
Yeah, I feel great about our quarterback room. I love our whole system and what we do with them. Actually, somebody said this morning — if you think about it, since the helmet player-to-coach communication came around, I think our quarterbacks have thrown for more yards than anyone else in the country. That’s obviously three really good quarterbacks — Jackson last year and these two now. They all prepare really well. I think Charlie does a great job, along with Joe Judge and Fisher, working with them. It’s just a really good system, and they get along really well. Again, I said it last week — I think we have two quarterbacks better than most teams’ starters, so that’s an awesome situation to be in. Truly pleased.
On last year’s game against Florida…
No, maybe a little, but not much. These teams are so different every year — especially ours. They have a lot of the same players, but most teams are different now because of the portal. These guys are heavy high school, so it just doesn’t mean very much. We’ve got to prepare to play. We’ve got to do a better job in turnover margin. I feel like we’ve been cheating that a bit by outplaying teams elsewhere or just having better players sometimes. But I told them again today — that doesn’t sustain all season. It’ll catch up to you. We’ve got things to fix, and it doesn’t matter what happened last year.
On what’s the top priority for a head coach changing jobs…
Wasn’t ready for that one. I think that’s evolved and changed. A few years ago, people asked about facilities — practice fields, locker rooms — but that’s not really it anymore. Now it’s NIL. It’s how much NIL money you have, how your collective is run. That’s basically your salary cap — that’s what you can spend. And like in pro sports, over time, payroll matters. Some things have evened out a bit, but there’s still a difference. You still ask: how much support is your program getting? What’s your collective like? There are still advantages for the traditional “blue bloods.” Kids still care about stadium size, history, Heismans, national championships, and location to talent. So all of that matters, but the focus has shifted — it used to be your assistant coach pool, now it’s your player pool.
On if he’s addressed any more rumors/distractions with the team…
I haven’t talked to them about it. I’m close enough with the players that if it were on their minds, they’d joke about it. I don’t think it’s a distraction. Like I said before, it’s a different age. These guys get more of it than I do. They get calls on Saturday nights after games from other coaches talking about next year, about money and plans. So, no, I don’t think it’s that big a deal.
On if the coach or the program is more important for success…
There’s no analytic for that — no percentage breakdown. Coaching matters. Kids want to go where they’ve seen coaches develop players and get them better schematically. Like the quarterback stat — if you’re a quarterback, it’s a big deal that our guys have thrown for more yards than anyone since helmet comms began. Each kid weighs it differently — some care about the coach, some the school, tradition, location, money — every kid’s scale is different.
On importance of making a decision to stay or leave before the transfer portal opens January 2…
I’m not that far down the road. Like I said last week, everyone wants to talk about other jobs, but you’re always two or three weeks away from coaching for your own job. One loss can drop you out of the top ten, two out of the top 25, and three might get you fired. So I’m just focused on keeping our home winning streak going. And, like I told Landry last week, if you’re a junior here, you’ve only seen one home loss; if you’re a fifth-year senior, you’ve seen three in five years. That’s pretty cool — we’d love to finish the season strong at home.
On Florida QB DJ Lagway…
I think DJ represents their whole team — extremely talented, capable of playing at an elite level. At times, when you watch film, you say, “Man, these guys are as good as anybody.” DJ’s like that. He played great against us last year. Anytime you’ve got a guy with an elite arm who’s hard to tackle and can run over you — that’s a problem.
On the CFP committee’s initial rankings…
In some ways, yeah, a little bit. But in other ways, no. Like, Texas A&M being No. 3 — what more could they do to be No. 1? People always say schedule tough — they played nine SEC games and went to Notre Dame and won. But if that’s not rewarded, what’s the point? They have the highest metrics, and they’re still not No. 1. So I don’t know. You could take those top two teams, put them on a neutral site, ask Vegas for a spread — that’s probably a better measure than a group of people guessing in a room.
On his role with Oxford High School’s football team…
That’s a better question than yours. No, I stay out of it. Coach Cutcliffe does a great job with the team and the quarterbacks. I’ve been around too many over-involved parents, especially at that position, so I try to be the opposite. Even last week, there was a situation where I was 20 yards away and had to stop myself from saying, “Run the ball to the right!” I just let him play. It’s awesome watching him and that team — they’ve had great comebacks. It’s been cool seeing my daughter Landry there, her friends, and even some Ole Miss guys like Keon and Trigg showing up to watch. It’s just been a blessing — a really special experience.
On high school referees…
Yeah, I got mad at the refs but didn’t say anything. I thought there’d be a 10-second runoff — there’s not in high school. I think I do a pretty good job of controlling emotions. Kevin Smith, our running back coach, not so much — he was celebrating in the end zone one time. But I just try not to overstep or overshadow Knox. I let him have his time. Unless there’s wedding proposals or engagements — then I do step in.
