Of course, Kiffin was fired from his USC job in 2013 soon after those comments and then joined Nick Saban and Alabama as that team’s offensive coordinator. The rest is history, leading up to Kiffin’s Ole Miss upsetting Georgia this past Saturday.
Kiffin once again credited that chain of events to Finebaum, who of course isn’t the main reason Kiffin got fired at USC but probably didn’t help matters with his pointed, public commentary.
“I wouldn’t have been here to have the Georgia win if you wouldn’t have got me fired at USC,” Kiffin told Finebaum, who laughed at the comment. “Again, I’m grateful to you, Paul. Thanks for that day. Thanks for the Miley Cyrus comment.”
Both seemed to be in good spirits during the moment, and it looks like they’ve mostly buried the hatchet over one of the more infamous disses in recent college football history.
You can still detect a little salt from Kiffin, but this is probably as amicable as it’s going to get between these two.
“We planned for this game for a year, game-planned all offseason,” said Ole Miss Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin after the Georgia game
The Ole Miss Rebels dominated the Georgia Bulldogs 28-10 in a huge home win to keep Ole Miss’ College Football Playoff hopes alive. Ole Miss forced three Georgia turnovers and shutdown the Georgia offense after the Bulldogs scored an opening drive touchdown.
Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin deserves credit for rebuilding the Rebels after Georgia embarrassed Ole Miss 52-17 in Athens a year ago.
“A year ago we lost to these guys by like 30,” Kiffin said to ESPN reporter Molly McGrath after Ole Miss’ 28-10 upset win. “We made a decision, we’ve got to recruit differently. We’ve got to go shopping. We planned for this game for a year, game-planned all offseason.”
So what changed since 2023? Ole Miss upgraded its defensive line while maintaining a strong offense. The Rebels bullied Georgia in the trenches. Ole Miss outrushed Georgia 134 to 59. The Rebels’ unleashed their elite pass rush on Georgia quarterback Carson Beck, who took five sacks.
Georgia deserves some criticism as well. The Bulldogs’ offense has been inconsistent this season. Dropped passes, interceptions and an inefficient rushing attack has plagued the Dawgs’ offense all season.
College football fans have a suspect for why there are so many squirrels on Ole Miss’ field this season.
Welcome to FTW Explains: A guide to catching up on and better understanding stuff going on in the world. The college football is making jokes about Lane Kiffin and squirrels, and you may be wondering what’s up with that. We’ve got you covered.
Something unexpected happened Saturday in Oxford, Mississippi. It was odd but not particularly unique for an Ole Miss football game, and no, we’re not talking about Ole Miss upsetting Georgia with a decisive 28-10 victory — though that happened.
And now, college football fans are speculating, positing, theorizing that perhaps, just maybe, Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin is behind the squirrel delay. Was it there for fun or nefarious reasons? After all, this isn’t the first time this has happened at an Ole Miss game.
But let’s back up.
A squirrel on the field caused a delay in the Ole Miss’ upset against Georgia
Saturday early in the second quarter of the Bulldogs’ road game against Ole Miss, this squirrel ran on the field. Obviously, it’s challenging to catch a speedy squirrel or even to gently usher it off the field and out of harm’s way, so there was a little bit of a delay.
But this wasn’t the first squirrel on Ole Miss’ field this season?
Nope! A few weeks ago during Ole Miss’ home win over Oklahoma, a squirrel was spotted on the field at the end of the first quarter, causing another momentary delay.
Was it the same squirrel? A different one? Where are they coming from? Are they trying to football? What is going on with all the squirrels at Ole Miss?!
Something fishy is super definitely going on, and college football fans love conspiracy theories.
So why are fans blaming Lane Kiffin for releasing the squirrels?
Nov 9, 2024; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; A squirrel runs across the field at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium during the first half between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Mississippi Rebels. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images
Well, Kiffin and his creativity are kind of legendary in college football, so college football fans are wondering… maybe he’s actually behind the squirrel invasion.
The SEC responded with penalties for fake injuries
Faking injuries — presumably in lieu of burning a timeout or to disrupt another team’s rhythm — became such a problem that SEC commissioner Greg Sankey warned teams against it earlier this month and threatened penalties.
“As plainly as it can be stated: Stop any and all activity related to faking injuries to create time-outs,” Sankey wrote in the memo, a copy of which was obtained by ESPN.
He ended the memo by writing: “Play football and stop the feigned injury nonsense.”
Per ESPN, the penalties include a public reprimand and $50,000 fine to a head coach on a first offense, another reprimand and $100,000 fine for a second and, should it happen a third time, the coach will be suspended for the next game. Similar punishments will happen for staff members encouraging this.
So, naturally, college football fans are pointing to Lane Kiffin as the squirrel wrangler
With Ole Miss having multiple egregious fake injury moments and the SEC threatening fines, college football fans naturally drew the very logical and without-fault conclusion that Kiffin is behind the squirrel invasion at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.
Does he whistle, and a squirrel comes out? Do he and the squirrel communicate on a radio? Does Kiffin just have endless squirrels in his pockets? We need answers!
The SEC: We will fine/suspend you if you fake injuries ✋
As the theories continued, some on college football Twitter even speculated about other capabilities of the squirrel — along with many jokes — and, you know, they might just be on to something. Who knows?!
The squirrel is part of a sign-stealing scam by Lane Kiffin, no I will not be elaborating further
On Saturday in Oxford, No. 16 Ole Miss upset No. 3 Georgia by a comfortable margin, winning 28-10 despite interference from squirrels. Ole Miss didn’t allow the Bulldogs to score a touchdown in the final three quarters.
And fans in Mississippi pounced on the opportunity on the heels of the historic win – the biggest of Kiffin’s tenure so far – to rush the field at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, albeit doing so a bit prematurely.
But once fans got on the field, they had their way with the goalposts, climbing on them and ultimately tearing them down. The Oxford Police Department quickly admitted defeat via social media:
With the result of Alabama versus LSU still pending, the SEC has five teams with two losses as of Saturday afternoon, which should make the battle for at-large bids to the playoff all the more interesting.
Ole Miss Rebels coach Lane Kiffin explains Georgia’s situation with quarterback Carson Beck: “It’s a good problem to have.”
Ole Miss Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin has had Saturday’s matchup with the No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs circled on his calendar for a long time. Kiffin and Ole Miss lost to Georgia 52-17 in Athens a year ago. Kiffin vowed to change things within his program following the Rebels’ humbling loss to Georgia last season.
Now, No. 16 Ole Miss (7-2, 3-2) faces Georgia (7-1, 5-1) with its College Football Playoff hopes on the line at home. Kiffin has a lot of respect for Georgia and head coach Kirby Smart.
“Anybody that’s going to win it (the playoff), it’s going to have to go through Georgia at some point. They’re the premier program in college football. You know, outside of Alabama, they won 51 straight games,” said Kiffin. Georgia’s last loss, outside of Alabama, came to Florida in 2020.
Kiffin and Ole Miss beefed up their defensive front and other areas of their roster in the offseason in preparation for playing teams like Georgia. The Rebels have the third-best scoring defense in the SEC at 13.2 points per game and the SEC’s top rushing defense at only 82.2 yards per game.
“I hope so,” said Kiffin when asked if the Rebels roster is better this season versus last season. “You know, that game didn’t go very well a year ago. But every game is independent and different, so yeah, I think we’re in a better place.”
Ole Miss’ season has not gone exactly to plan with the Rebels suffering losses to LSU and Kentucky. Still, Ole Miss has a very strong team that will be much more competitive against Georgia this season.
“I think he is very talented, played great, played an amazing game against us a year ago,” said Kiffin on Georgia quarterback Carson Beck. “You know, he’s throwing some picks, but quarterbacks go through that.”
Beck has thrown 11 interceptions over his past five games. Georgia’s offense has remained effective despite Beck’s turnover issues.
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“You got a great quarterback, versus some people around the country who say ‘okay, well they protect the ball but the quarterback can’t make the throws.’ So it’s a good problem to have,” continued Kiffin on Beck, who is still the No. 15 quarterback in the country in passing yardage with 2,302 yards.
Why Georgia football faces their biggest challenge defensively of the season against Ole Miss
The Ole Miss Rebels’ offense will be a significant challenge for the Georgia Bulldogs’ defense. This matchup for Georgia against Ole Miss has elements that the Bulldog defense have not seen this season. UGA has not seen an offense this explosive.
Here are three reasons why this offense can cause headaches for this Bulldog team.
Jaxson Dart
Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart poses a threat that the Bulldogs have not seen all season. Dart leads the nation with 3,210 passing yards. Dart still has the ability to leave the pocket and create a positive gain with his legs. Head coach Kirby Smart knows what is in front of his defense this Saturday.
“He’s playing at a really high level. He sees things well. I think he, Lane (Kiffin) and the offensive staff are further along. They know what they’re looking for. They know when you get in something, what beats that, and they know how to attack it. He’s just a proven winner, and he’s a fierce competitor. He’s hard to stop,” Smart said.
Dart’s elite play has propelled the Ole Miss passing offense to the top of the nation and Rebels have the second-best total offense at 555 yards per game. Much of that success is thanks to Dart, whose contributions have been crucial. If the Bulldogs hope to walk away with a win, then they’ll need to contain Dart and slow down the Rebels’ high-powered offense in Oxford this Saturday.
Receiver Core
Jordan Watkins #11 of the Ole Miss Rebels had a historic game against the Arkansas Razorbacks. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
Ole Miss receiver Tre Harris leads the charge for the Rebels with 987 yards, ranking third in the nation and first in the SEC. Harris is questionable to play with an injury.
Receiver Jordan Watkins stepped up in a big way last week against Arkansas, racking up 250 yards and scoring five touchdowns. Adding to the firepower, Antwane “Juice” Wells brings familiarity with Georgia from his time at South Carolina. This trio will challenge the UGA secondary all game long.
“They’ve got several draft pick receivers that are good players,” Smart said.
Having three options that can win in any situation is tough to cover especially with a home crowd that is waiting for a big play to happen.
Lane Kiffin
(Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
Lane Kiffin as averaged the sixth best total offense for the Rebels since arriving in Oxford in 2020. Kirby Smart knows the challenge that Kiffin brings as a play caller.
“He knows scheme. Lane (Kiffin) has been around a lot of football. His dad is one of the greatest defensive minds there ever was. He knows how to attack defenses probably at a higher rate than most offensive coordinators. He’s been experienced with that. He knows the difficulties that come with it,” Smart said.
Kiffin stands out as one of the most creative play-callers in college football, always looking to exploit matchups and put his team in the best position to succeed. Facing a potential College Football Playoff elimination, expect for Kiffin and Ole Miss to unleash his full playbook, using every trick and scheme to secure a critical win. Kiffin and Smart were on Alabama staff from 2014-2015, so they have a lot of familiarity.
How did Kirby Smart, Lane Kiffin, Mario Cristobal, Curt Cignetti and other former Nick Saban assistant coaches do at their respective Power Four and G5 programs in Week 10? We take a look.
Several members of former Alabama football coach Nick Saban’s expansive coaching tree had a busy Saturday in Week 10 of the 2024 college football season this past weekend.
From as far south as Miami to as far north as Bloomington, Ind., Saban’s former Crimson Tide assistants had their teams involved in high-stakes conference games on the first Saturday of November.
Not all of the former Saban assistants were on their respective sidelines in Week 10. Among the coaches whose teams had bye weeks was Texas Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian, whose team is ranked No. 5 in this week’s US LBM Coaches Poll.
Mike Locksley and the Maryland Terrapins were also on a bye, as were Brent Key and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, Bill O’Brien and the Boston College Eagles, and Butch Jones’ Arkansas State program.
Former Alabama offensive coordinator Jim McElwain’s Central Michigan Chippewas didn’t play Saturday as CMU has three consecutive Tuesday night games coming up (MACtion!).
Lance Taylor’s first-place Western Michigan Broncos also didn’t play Saturday but will look to improve to 5-0 in MAC play Wednesday when they welcome Northern Illinois to Kalamazoo.
A week ago, Roll Tide Wire ranked every member of the Saban coaching tree by their schools’ season-to-date performances. This week, we’re taking a look at how each of those head coaches and their respective teams fared in Week 10 action.
Again, former Saban assistants whose teams were idle in Week 10 do not appear on this list. With that out of the way, here’s how every former Saban assistant and his team fared over the weekend.
Major Applewhite (South Alabama Jaguars)
Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
Overall/Current Record at South Alabama: 4-5
Week 10 Game: Georgia Southern 34, South Alabama 30
2024 Salary: $825,000
South Alabama had a fourth-quarter collapse against a Georgia Southern team they had on the ropes in Mobile. The Eagles got two touchdown passes from JC French to erase a 30-14 deficit heading into the fourth quarter. With both teams at 3-1 in Sun Belt play entering the game, this was a huge missed opportunity for Applewhite and the Jaguars.
Billy Napier (Florida Gators)
Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)
Overall Record at Florida: 14-18
2024 Record: 4-4
Week 10 Game: Georgia 34, Florida 20
2024 Salary: $7.3 million
It’s hard for me to be too upset about Napier and the Gators’ performance against a Georgia team that’s simply better than Florida. The Gators competed and didn’t allow themselves to be pushed around in a game many figured would be a blowout. If not for an injury to Florida starting quarterback DJ Lagway, we could be talking about this game in a whole new light.
Charles Huff (Marshall Thundering Herd)
Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY Sports
Overall Record at Marshall: 27-20
2024 Record: 5-3
Week 10 Game: Marshall 28, UL Monroe 23
2024 Salary: $755,500
Huff and the Herd won their fourth game in their last five contests, getting two fourth-quarter touchdowns to hold off ULM to improve to 3-1 in Sun Belt play. Marshall is a half-game behind Georgia Southern in the Sun Belt East division. At 5-3 and scheduled to face a Southern Miss team that’s one of the worst in FBS for the second straight year, Huff is well in position to lead the Herd to a fourth straight bowl game in as many seasons as Marshall’s coach.
Kirby Smart (Georgia Bulldogs)
Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union
Overall Record at Georgia: 101-17
2024 Record: 6-1
Week 10 Game: Georgia 34, Florida 20
2024 Salary: $13,282,580
If we’re going by season-to-date rankings, Smart still tops our list at No. 1. The Bulldogs struggled for much of the afternoon against Florida in Jacksonville as Carson Beck threw three more interceptions to continue an alarming trend. He now has eight interceptions over his last three games.
Georgia has won all three of those contests in spite of Beck’s turnovers. While Beck looked much in the second half, questions still linger about his turnover ratio — and how much longer Smart can seemingly pin the blame on his receivers.
Lane Kiffin (Ole Miss Rebels)
Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images
Overall Record at Ole Miss: 40-17
2024 Record: 7-2
Week 10 Game: Ole Miss 63, Arkansas 31
2024 Salary: $9 million
During his appearance on “College GameDay” Saturday, Nick Saban predicted that Sam Pittman and the Arkansas Razorbacks would pull an upset over Ole Miss. “Not so fast, my friend.” Jaxson Dart threw for a school-record 515 yards, and his six touchdown passes in one game tied Eli Manning (in 2001) and Matt Corral (in 2020). Ole Miss had 694 yards of total offense in a complete domination of the Hogs.
Last week, we wrote that Kiffin hadn’t been able to win the big one yet in Year 5 with the Rebels. With the No. 2 ranked Georgia Bulldogs coming to Oxford this Saturday, Kiffin has a chance to change that and put Ole Miss squarely back into the College Football Playoff race.
Curt Cignetti (Indiana Hoosiers)
Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Overall/Current Record at Indiana: 8-0
Week 10 Game: Indiana 47, Michigan State 10
2024 Salary: $4.25 million
A week after hosting “College GameDay” for the first time, Cignetti and quarterback Kurtis Rourke led the Hoosiers to their first 9-0 start in program history with another offensive explosion on Saturday in East Lansing. The Hoosiers are averaging 49.0 points per game this season, and their fewest points scored in any one game was the 31 they put up against the Washington Huskies in Week 9 and their season opener against FIU.
The Hoosiers host the four-loss Michigan Wolverines in Bloomington in Week 11. If they can beat the reigning national champions, they’ll face a “Game of the Year of the Week” in Columbus matchup against the Ohio State Buckeyes with major Big Ten championship and College Football Playoff implications on the line at “The Shoe.”
Mario Cristobal (Miami Hurricanes)
Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
Overall Record at Miami: 21-13
2024 Record: 9-0
Week 9 Game: Miami 53, Duke 31
2024 Salary: $7.7 million
Cristobal’s Hurricanes pulled away from former Miami coach Manny Diaz and the Duke Blue Devils with a 36-point second half explosion to erase a 21-17 halftime deficit. Miami recently passed Ole Miss for the national lead in average yards per game at 556.9. They’re also averaging 47.4 points per game with quarterback Cam Ward leading one of the nation’s most explosive offenses.
At 9-0, Miami is one of only five unbeaten teams in college football, joining Cignetti’s Hoosiers, the No. 1 ranked Oregon Ducks, BYU Cougars, and Army Black Knights. With Clemson suffering a stunning 33-21 loss to the Louisville Cardinals over the weekend, the ACC is officially Miami’s to lose. Their schedule takes them to Georgia Tech and former Saban assistant Brent Key in Week 11.
Former LSU running back Logan Diggs could make his Ole Miss debut later this year
A former LSU running back could be set to make his Ole Miss debut soon. [autotag]Logan Diggs[/autotag], who began his career with Notre Dame and spent one year with the Tigers, hit the transfer portal and transferred to Ole Miss after LSU’s bowl game.
Diggs tore his ACL in the bowl win, but [autotag]Lane Kiffin[/autotag] said Diggs has a chance to return following Ole Miss’ second bye week. That would be Nov. 23, after Ole Miss plays Arkansas and Georgia.
Diggs ran 119 times for 653 yards with the Tigers in 2023. He caught eight passes for 82 more yards. That put Diggs at a solid 5.8 yards per touch, something LSU could use now with its struggling run game.
Kiffin said it would be great for Ole Miss to get a “big, physical back” like Diggs in the backfield.
Week 13 may seem late for a return, but Ole Miss is still hoping to make a college football playoff run. Diggs could inject some life into a Rebel offense looking for consistency.
Ole Miss already has a strong rotation with Henry Parrish and Ulysses Bentley. Diggs would make it one of the deeper backfields in college football.
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Lane Kiffin was not happy to see the Tigers get another night game in Week 11.
When LSU hosts Alabama in Week 9, it will be under the lights in Death Valley as the game picked up the 6:30 p.m. CT time slot on ABC. It will mark five straight primetime games for the Tigers, including its second big-time home matchup after it also played Ole Miss at night.
“Yeah, I mean, I think that’s proven over time in the NFL and college, you know,” Kiffin said when asked if home night games are an advantage. “Playing at night in electric atmospheres is a home-field advantage. Tough when you’ve got to do that as an opposing team. So that’s been proven for a long time…It is an advantage. So, who went at night? LSU gets to play at night again, I guess? Shocker. That’s two for two for them.
“I feel bad for our fans not having one night conference game. It’s really unfortunate for them. So, whatever. It’s just really disappointing but it is what it is.”
Ole Miss also likely needs to win out to keep its playoff hopes alive, and Kiffin is clearly frustrated with the SEC’s scheduling choices.
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Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin discussed what decided the game in Oklahoma’s 26-14 loss to the Rebels.
That the Oklahoma Sooners led at halftime of their loss to Ole Miss made the outcome even more disappointing. Even though the third quarter was a punt fest for the Sooners offense, late in the game, OU had a chance to pull within one score after moving the ball inside the red zone.
But a failed trick play on first down led to the Sooners facing a second-and-11. And from there, the Ole Miss defense simply teed off on Jackson Arnold.
On Oklahoma’s final three drives, Arnold was sacked seven times.
“It was good to have a lead, going great, and make it two [possessions], Kiffin said after the game. “We’ve been in that position with both our losses, with the ball, ahead one score, and not pushing it to two scores. Because when you push it to two, now they’ve got to throw more, and now our pass rush can come alive. And that’s really what I was hoping was happening when we had the ball in the last game [against LSU]…I think that helped getting to two scores [ahead], and they were able to pass rush more.”
It made all the difference in the ball game. For the first three quarters, the Sooners could maintain their offensive balance, using the run game to keep Ole Miss’ pass rushers from being able to simply rush the passer. But when Oklahoma got down 12 points and had to throw, the offensive line didn’t have an answer when they got into obvious passing situations.
When Oklahoma drove the ball into the red zone with about five minutes left to play, they failed to create a positive gain on first-and-10, and that allowed the Rebels to get after Jackson Arnold.
What had been a solid day upfront was blown up in the final moments as Ole Miss collected sack after sack en route to a record 10 sacks allowed by the Oklahoma Sooners.
It was a disappointing end of the game for the Sooners offensive line. A good defense was able to make OU one-dimensional. When that happens, it will be hard on any offensive line, but especially one that’s been struggling in 2024.
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