Nick Saban Names LSU No. 1 Coaching Job in College Football Amid Lane Kiffin Move

LSU Tigers head coach Lane Kiffin sent shockwaves through the college football world last fall when he accepted the gig in Baton Rouge with the SEC landscape immediately shifting following the move.

Kiffin elected to depart the Ole Miss Rebels amid a College Football Playoff run for the opportunity to make the jump to the Bayou State in an unprecedented move.

But Kiffin didn't make the decision alone.

A coach that has been around the game his entire life, Kiffin has compiled a long list of mentors along the way - including college football icon Nick Saban.

Saban labeled the LSU Tigers job the best gig in America where he quickly sold Kiffin on the idea of making the move from Oxford to LSU.

“I told the story at the press conference, but I was torn. And when I called Coach Saban and talked it through with him, he said: ‘You know, Lane, you’ll always regret if you don’t go to LSU — it’s the best job in America,’” Kiffin said on Tuesday while speaking at The Leadership Power Breakfast, according to WAFB Channel 9’s Jacques Doucet.

“And when he said that, it really made the decision for me. And as I’ve looked at it, it has pushed me, it has gotten me out of a comfort zone. That we were doing amazing things (at Ole Miss), but you come here and you feel the power of the place, and it drives you everyday to even go to another level.”

"You'll always regret, if you don't go to LSU. It's the best job in America."

Nick Saban to @Lane_Kiffin during #LSU effort to land Kiffin as the new @LSUfootball head coach.

"When he said that, that really made the decision for me." @WAFB pic.twitter.com/Oo6VxzwY1F
— Jacques Doucet (@JacquesDoucet) January 20, 2026

Kiffin has reflected on the advice he's received from both Saban and Pete Carroll as the two mentors that paved his decision-making process.

“I felt like everybody I talked to outside of the state (of Mississippi) all basically said the same thing, okay. They all said, ‘Man, you are going to regret it if you don’t take the shot and you don’t go to LSU,’” Kiffin said during his Dec. 1st press conference, referring to Saban and ex-USC coach Pete Carroll.

“It’s the best job in America with the best resources, and to win it. And, it’s obviously been done here before by a number of people.”

Now, as the elite shot-caller continues navigating his next chapter, all eyes are on the LSU Tigers with the new-look program taking shape in Baton Rouge.

More LSU News:

LSU Football's Transfer Portal Class Skyrockets To The Top After Sam Leavitt Decision

LSU Football's Transfer Portal Departures Quickly Finding New Schools Amid Rebuild

LSU Football Officially Signs No. 1 Transfer Quarterback Sam Leavitt to Portal Class

Join the Community:

Follow Zack Nagy on Twitter: @znagy20 and LSU Tigers On SI: @LSUTigersSI for all coverage surrounding the LSU Tigers.