Ole Miss Football's Lane Kiffin Compares Georgia Bulldogs Kirby Smart to Nick Saban

No. 5 Ole Miss (6-0, 3-0 SEC) sits atop the Southeastern Conference at the midway point of the 2025 season with the program gearing up for a tremendous challenge in Week 8.

Lane Kiffin and the Rebels will hit the road to Athens this weekend for a clash against the Georgia Bulldogs lead by one of the best in the business - Kirby Smart.

With a statement victory already under Ole Miss' belt, Kiffin and Co. will look to further solidify the program's College Football Playoff chances with a win in the Peach State.

"Kirby does an amazing job over time of winning close games and winning in different styles depending on what’s going on," Kiffin said. "It’s why he’s one of the greatest coaches ever.

"You are talking about, what are we at, the sixth year now? The last time they lost in the regular season to a team not in Alabama or now Ole Miss is Florida in 2020, if I remember right. Think about that for a while.

Ole Miss Rebels Football: Trinidad Chambliss. — Courtesy of Ole Miss Rebels Football.

"That’s dominance in the hardest conference, by far, to be dominant in. That’s coaching really well. A lot of good players, but coaching really well in situations and being really hard to beat."

The stage is set in Athens with ESPN College GameDay set to be in town for the Top-10 clash at Sanford Stadium, but Kiffin is keeping his program even-keeled.

The Southeastern Conference gauntlet has already begun for the program with Saturday's challenge once again giving the Rebels an opportunity to make a statement.

For Kiffin and Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart, it's no secret there is a relationship that has been built over time with both decision-makers gearing up for what has the makings of being another classic.

On Monday, Kiffin compared Smart to legendary college football figure Nick Saban.

The Game Information: Week 7 Edition

Matchup: Ole Miss Football at Georgia Bulldogs
Kickoff Time: 2:30 p.m. CT
Venue: Sanford Stadium - Athens (Ga.)
TV Channel: ABC
Radio: Ole Miss Sports Radio Network
Ole Miss Record: 5-0 (3-0 SEC)
Georgia Bulldogs: 4-1 (1-1 SEC)

The Broadcast Crew: Week 8

Play-by-Play: Chris Fowler
Color Commentary: Kirk Herbstreit
Sideline Reporter: Holly Rowe

Lane Kiffin and Kirby Smart. — Nov 11, 2023; Athens, Georgia, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin talks to Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart before a game at Sanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Kiffin's Thoughts: High Praise for Smart

"He's done it a lot longer. It’s probably 11 [seasons] now. Done a great job. I remember when he went there. I was at Alabama when he took the job and had the first year not playing as well as they’d like and he kind of redid their offense and then has never kind of looked back since. Really became the new Alabama and kind of built it the exact same way.

"[Media] talks about people leaving coach Saban and what do they take? I think Kirby basically is coach Saban, you know, in almost every area — how he is, how he coaches everything, how he models his team. It’s worked. Basically have repeated the program and the success really against everybody but Alabama."

No. 5 Ole Miss will kickoff against the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday afternoon at Sanford Stadium with the stage set for a Top-10 SEC clash.

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