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The past few days have been a blur for many Oregon Duck fans, ever since the news came out on Monday morning that head coach Mario Cristobal would be leaving Eugene to take his dream job at the University of Miami.
Since then, the decision-makers at Oregon have been scrambling to find a replacement, and try to get him hired before next week’s early signing day so that the Ducks can hopefully not completely lose out on what is a pretty nice recruiting class.
As is always the case in a major coaching search, we’ve heard a slew of names thrown out as possibilities. Some are mundane and considered safe — your Chip Kelly’s and Justin Wilcox’s — while others are bold but plausible, such as Baylor’s Dave Aranda, or BYU’s Kalani Sitake.
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Then there is the outlandishly exuberant suggestions. I’m talking about the candidates who seem far-fetched, but you might be able to convince yourself that the Ducks have a chance to land them, should some crazy things happen.
Those are the guys that we want to talk about here. To be honest, with the money that Oregon was reportedly willing to give Cristobal in order to stay — The Oregonian‘s John Canzano pegged it at 10 years, $85 million — it may not be crazy to think that the Ducks could lure away one of the biggest names in the sport. With that type of money on the table, anyone would have to stop and think about the opportunity.
Well, almost anyone. It’s hard to think of Nick Saban ever leaving Alabama, or Jim Harbaugh leaving Michigan. However, we’ve seen already this season that some high-profile coaches have been willing to undergo a change of scenery for the big bucks, just look at Lincoln Riley and Brian Kelly.
So without further ado, we want to take a look at some long shots. Who are they, and what are the chances that Phil Knight and the Oregon boosters could actually get them to pick up the phone and consider a move to the great northwest?
The Candidate: Lane Kiffin (Ole Miss)
Lane Kiffin’s name has been popping up a lot in Oregon circles over the last 24 hours. Some rumors online showed that Kiffin was very interested in taking over as the Ducks’ head coach, but Canzano put some cold water on that by saying that he wasn’t “in the mix.”
Lane Kiffin “not in the mix” for Oregon football vacancy, per source.
— John Canzano (@johncanzanobft) December 9, 2021
Of course, there are other reports that Phil Knight is interested…
Have heard from two Pac-12 sources that Phil Knight is interested in the Lane Train. Don't know if anything will come of it but an interesting slice of the search https://t.co/cL4gvPkL3g
— Jon Wilner (@wilnerhotline) December 9, 2021
As is the nature of rumors, who knows what we can believe or not. So while you consider whether you can allow yourself to think about Lane Kiffin wearing the green and yellow, we want to ask whether or not he would actually take the job.
Kiffin just recently signed a contract extension with Ole Miss after an incredibly successful season, but should someone offer him a bag of cash and the opportunity to get out of the gauntlet of SEC play, I have to think he would take it. Give him a chance at making it to the College Football Playoff without having to go through Alabama, Georgia, and LSU to get there? Sign me up.
Kiffin’s coaching career has been…eventful, to say the least, but his experience should be encouraging for Duck fans. He’s spent time at USC, Oakland, Tennessee, Alabama, Florida Atlantic, and Ole Miss. He’s coached under Nick Saban and learned how to recruit from the best. He may be a bit unhinged when it comes to social media, but he’s proved over the years that he can direct players and put them in a position to succeed.
For any fan who is a bit gun-shy at the thought of bringing Kiffin to Eugene, I absolutely get it. Personally, I am all for it. More importantly, I really think that he would consider it. The resources at Oregon and a relatively straight path towards national relevance are hard to pass up on.
Determination: Definitely Possible