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Details of Lane Kiffin’s Massive LSU Contract Revealed

Kiffin will be one of the highest-paid coaches in college football.
Lane Kiffin left Ole Miss for LSU and one of the biggest contracts in college football.
Lane Kiffin left Ole Miss for LSU and one of the biggest contracts in college football. | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Lane Kiffin is headed to LSU, leaving Ole Miss behind, and his move didn’t come cheap. We now know how much Kiffin will be making to coach the Tigers.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel is reporting Kiffin’s deal with LSU is for seven years and is worth “approximately” $12 million per year. That seven-year, $84 million deal would make Kiffin one of the highest-paid coaches in college football. It is a significant raise on Kiffin’s contract with the Rebels, where he was making $9 million a year.

There will be plenty of discussion about Kiffin’s move to Baton Rouge, but for now, he’s largely seen as a villain for his decision. There is no doubt LSU offers a higher ceiling than Ole Miss, and the increased salary is certainly nothing to sneeze at. But leaving an 11-1 team that is headed to the College Football Playoff is certainly a bold choice.

Kiffin’s replacement has already been named, as Pete Golding will be the team’s permanent head coach moving forward. Ole Miss’s players are projecting confidence in their new coach and the team’s ability to win a national title this year.

The 50-year-old Kiffin will inherit a team that went 7-5 this season and 3-5 in the SEC. Their 2026 recruiting class is currently ranked 12th in the country, and local five-stars Lamar Brown and Richard Anderson have reaffirmed their commitments, which is a huge win for Kiffin.

Kiffin is getting paid like one of the top coaches in college football. He’ll now be expected to perform to that level every year.


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Ryan Phillips
RYAN PHILLIPS

Ryan Phillips is a senior writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has worked in digital media since 2009, spending eight years at The Big Lead before joining SI in 2024. Phillips also co-hosts The Assembly Call Podcast about Indiana Hoosiers basketball and previously worked at Bleacher Report. He is a proud San Diego native and a graduate of Indiana University’s journalism program.

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