National Media Reacts to Lane Kiffin Departing Ole Miss For LSU Football Coaching Job

Lane Kiffin has officially made his move to Baton Rouge with the new head coach of the LSU Tigers set to be formally introduced on Monday afternoon at Tiger Stadium.

In a move that has sent shockwaves across the college football scene, there's a new shot-caller in the Bayou State with Kiffin departing Ole Miss for an opportunity with LSU.

“I am incredibly honored to have the opportunity to lead the storied LSU Football program,” Kiffin said. “From national championships to iconic players, LSU is synonymous with excellence and is among the most powerful brands in all of sports.

"I’m grateful to President Rousse, Verge Ausberry and LSU’s leadership for placing their faith in me to lead this program.

"Our staff will recruit the very best student-athletes in the country – starting at home in the state of Louisiana – and will work tirelessly every day to bring championships that the LSU fans deserve. Geaux Tigers!”

LSU Tigers Football. — Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin talks with quarterback Trinidad Chambliss (6) during a college football game between Mississippi State and Ole Miss at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Miss., on Friday, Nov. 28, 2025. Ole Miss defeated Mississippi State 38-19 in the Egg Bowl. | Ayrton Breckenridge/Clarion Ledger / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Now, the national media is weighing in on the move as he prepares for his introductory press conference:

The National Media Response:

Stephen A. Smith's Take:

“This is ridiculous. Y’all just kill me with this stuff. Lane Kiffin took a better job,” Smith said. “… I am not here to be some kind of damn apologist for Lane Kiffin under any other circumstances, but in this particular situation, to act like he’s committed a crime—you all are in Oxford, Mississippi, OK? And you are booing this brother out of town after he’s won 74% of his games?

“After he’s spent the last four years being a top-four program in terms of wins in the entire college football landscape? Only Ohio State, Oregon and Georgia have been better. This is what he brought. You were nothing before him. The last time you won anything of relevance was when John F. Kennedy was president.”

“He gets a $5 million raise to go to a blue-blood program, OK, that ain’t in Oxford, Mississippi, and we’re having a problem with this?” Smith said. “Y’all got to be kidding me. You really, really need to stop. I’m serious. Not this one. All that other stuff about Lane Kiffin, fine. This one right here, y’all are being ridiculous.”

Paul Finebaum's Take:

“Yes, he does, and it’s self inflicted,” Finebaum said. “What he just told Marty Smith—three years ago, he said the exact same thing about Ole Miss when he turned down Auburn.

"He stayed because of his family. And unfortunately, for Lane Kiffin, as great a coach as he is—he still doesn’t have a championship as a head coach by the way—he keeps bringing all this on.

“Part of it is he’s always looking around. He has wandering eyes. Last year, had Florida done the right thing and fired Billy Napier, Lane Kiffin would have taken that job.

"This year, the better job is LSU. Three years from now, what if Alabama comes open? You don’t think he wants that job? He was begging for that job two years ago after Nick Saban retired.”

Cam Newton's Perspective:

“So this is the perspective that I need to get everybody who has been following this issue or this particular situation. What Lane Kiffin did, was in the best interest of Lane Kiffin,” Newton said on First Take.

“I don’t have an issue with that, but this is what I have an issue (with). When a kid transfers or goes into the transfer portal. Now we’re looking at that kid to say, ‘Oh, why is he going to different schools? Why is he doing this?’

"Well, coaches have been going into the transfer portal since the beginning of time. Ole Miss, Lane Kiffin, LSU, is in essence, the same thing we all have to do: what’s best for our careers?

“Lane Kiffin in this dynamic and not being able to coach the team is a little different than what another coach is dealing with as well. It’s insider trading. It’s tampering."

Adam Schefter Weighs In:

"He was making $7M a year at Ole Miss,” Schefter said. “What I don’t understand from the outside is, why didn’t Ole Miss step up and pay him.

“College football has become one big money-grab. Would anybody in any line of work pass up a $5M a year raise to go somewhere else? No.”

More LSU News:

Kirk Herbstreit, Nick Saban Evaluate Lane Kiffin's Decision Amid LSU Football Push

Lane Kiffin 'Trending Toward Ending Up at LSU' As Tigers Pursue Coveted Head Coach

No. 1 Wide Receiver in Louisiana, LSU Football Commit Remains Locked in With Tigers

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