Lane Kiffin Blames College Football Calendar for Messy Exit From Ole Miss to LSU

Kiffin reiterated his desire to coach the Rebels in the College Football Playoff, calendar didn't allow him to do so.

Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin looks at the scoreboard during a timeout against the Central Arkansas Bears during the second quarter at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Miss., on Sept 10, 2022. | Matt Bush / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

In a move that sent shockwaves across the college football landscape, Lane Kiffin made the decision to depart the Ole Miss Rebels for the LSU Tigers head coaching job on Sunday afternoon.

No. 6 Ole Miss (11-1, 7-1 SEC) is set to punch a ticket to the College Football Playoff this month, but the run will be without Kiffin at the helm of the program after making the move to Baton Rouge.

The decision to leave Ole Miss quickly became "messy" with Kiffin unable to coach the program in the postseason amid the best regular season in school history.

During Kiffin's introductory press conference with LSU, he detailed how the last 48 hours have "sucked" knowing that the college football calendar has made things tricky across the years.

Dec 1, 2025; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU new head coach Lane Kiffin speaks at South Stadium Club at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

“Obviously, the last 48 hours, in a lot of ways, sucked,” Kiffin said. “The only way I can describe it, (is that) it sucked for a lot of people. There was no way to possibly do it, in my opinion, any better than we did (from a) timing standpoint, because it’s a bad scheduling system of how it’s set up.

“Eventually, hopefully it gets like the NFL where can’t do that in the season and don’t have to make those decisions.

"But in that, it was very important and very critical. Verge (Ausberry) and his team had a really, really good (NIL) plan, and even talked to some donors that are part of that plan here, to see exactly; How does that work? And there’s a great plan here.”

For Kiffin, the move from Ole Miss to LSU wasn't an easy one, but one that he knew was the correct decision upon arriving at Tiger Stadium.

“I’m human. Even though you understand it’s the passion, you’re with your son and you’re driving and you’ve got to call a cop that you know so they’ll help you because you personally know them, because you are leaving the state," Kiffin said.

Dec 1, 2025; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU new head coach Lane Kiffin speaks at South Stadium Club at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

“You got to call them because you’re driving with your son and you’ve got to turn around. People are like screaming at you trying to run you off the road. I don’t know what they’re gonna do. So that affects you.

"That airport scene, all the things being said, I understand it. It’s the passion. But they’re saying that about you. You thought you did a really good job for six years for them. That affects you. 

“Even on the plane down here, you’re kind of like ‘Man, we made this decision, but God I really —’ you know? We landed last night and when I saw the board there and I saw the leadership and I felt the power of this place.

"Then we get out of the car and there’s the fans, just all of them out there at the airport. Then the cars drive by as you’re going to the office and you drive by Tiger Stadium and it’s lit up and you’re like, ‘I absolutely made the right decision.’ And it all went away.”

More Ole Miss News:

Ole Miss Makes Final Decision on Lane Kiffin Coaching CFP As LSU Tigers Pick Up Steam

Potential Lane Kiffin Replacements Revealed As Future With Ole Miss 'In Doubt'

Tony Vitello Pokes Fun at Ole Miss Football's Lane Kiffin in Goodbye to Tennessee

Join the Community:

Follow Zack Nagy on Twitter: @znagy20 and Ole Miss Rebels On SI: @OleMissOnSI for all coverage surrounding the Ole Miss program.