How to Keep Your Job, According to Lane Kiffin’s CFB Coaches Group Chat

Kristen Wong | Nov 18, 2025

Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin revealed he was in a group chat with Kirby Smart, Steve Sarkisian and a few other college football coaches where they talk about how to keep their jobs. / Screengrab on Twitter/ @PatMcAfeeShow

Much of the recent college football buzz has surrounded Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin, who’s been linked to the LSU and Florida head coaching vacancies while he's also currently leading his Rebels team to a likely College Football Playoff berth this winter.

Kiffin is in his sixth season at Ole Miss and has undeniably built something special in Oxford, having just clinched his third straight double-digit win campaign in ’25. The 50-year-old could nonetheless be looking for a fresh start at the arguably more distinguished programs at LSU or Florida, and will likely have to make a tough decision in the coming weeks about about where he ultimately wants to coach.

Amid rampant rumors over Kiffin's future, the Ole Miss coach joined Pat McAfee for a guest appearance in which he steered clear of saying anything definitive about the outside speculation. Instead, he shared a great tidbit about how he and a few other high-profile coaches have dealt with the stunning firings across the CFB landscape within the last month.

• Lane Kiffin Timeline: A Look at the Ups and Downs of Football’s Most Polarizing Coach

On The Pat McAfee Show, former NFL coach Bruce Arians warned Kiffin that Ole Miss was going to “try and fire your a--“ if he lost his upcoming rivalry game, the Egg Bowl against Mississippi State.

“I know that,” Kiffin said. “When they’re like, Are you focused on other places? I said, ‘No, I’m focused on winning.’ Because now what I’ve learned in college football, we have our little group chat with Sark [Steve Sarkisian] and Kirby [Smart] and a couple guys, and we came up with this: You lose one you’re out of the Top 10. You lose two you’re out of the Top 25. You lose three you get fired.

“We’re focused on our job of trying to get to 1–0 every week, because that’s the profession we’re in now.”

"You lose 1 game you're out of the top 10..

You lose 2 you're out of the top 25..

You lose 3 you get fired..

We're just trying to go 1-0 every week"@Lane_Kiffin #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/qWlisza4V7

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) November 18, 2025

Given what the AP Top 25 currently looks like, and given the records of Kiffin, Smart and other SEC coaches, that formula may not be as trusty as they might think.

Still, it was intriguing to hear how Kiffin and other coaches have been handling the latest firings around the league. Brian Kelly’s and James Franklin’s respective sackings from LSU and Penn State may prove that Kiffin’s 1-2-3 rule does carry some water—both coaches lost three games in their disappointing ’25 campaigns and were subsequently fired.

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