What Happened Last Time Texas DC Will Muschamp Faced Off Against Lane Kiffin?

Texas Longhorns' defensive coordinator Will Muschamp and LSU Tigers' head coach Lane Kiffin are on the short-list of the top defensive and offensive minds in college football, respectively. The pair have coached a combined 31 seasons of Southeastern Conference football and have coordinated four national title-winning teams and countless NFL Draft picks.

They will meet for the fifth time on Saturday when the Longhorns head to Tiger Stadium looking to beat their fifth ranked team this season. Kiffin leads the series 3-1, however Muschamp dominated their last meeting when his Georgia Bulldogs demolished Kiffin's Ole Miss Rebels 52-17 in 2023.

Now Muschamp has a chance to start a winning-streak, but to do that he will need to understand why he controlled their last game. If he does, the Longhorns will be in prime position to make the College Football Playoff for the third time in four years.

How Muschamp Beat Kiffin

Texas Longhorns defensive coordinator Will Muschamp observes his players before a game against the UTSA Roadrunners | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Despite the final score, Muschamp's Bulldogs did not control the game from the first defensive snap. In fact, Ole Miss' first three drives were sustained across 28 plays, accumulated 185 yards and yielded two touchdowns. However, its next six drives racked up just 19 yards, allowing Georgia to build a 31-point lead.

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Muschamp forced Rebels passer Jaxson Dart to hold on to the ball far longer than he was comfortable with while shutting down his escape lanes and constricting Mississippi's ground game. He out-leveraged Kiffin's quick-passing and screen game to the outside, forcing Dart to, unsuccessfully, test Georgia vertically.

Georgia sacked Dart twice, picked him off once and held him to 20 yards rushing on eight attempts. He finished the game with Pro Football Focus passing grade of 49.5 and a 9.1% turnover-worthy play rate, far surpassing his second-worst mark of that season, 5.4%.

The Bulldogs also pressured Dart on 38.1% of his drop-backs, despite Muschamp only blitzing on 28.6% of those plays. Dart was an All-SEC honorable mention that season, but Muschamp was able to play to all of his weaknesses by spreading bodies around and taking away the easy stuff.

Muschamp's ability to adapt his scheme to his personnel and opponent is ultimately the reason he was able to beat Kiffin for the first time. It is arguably the reason for most of his victories, especially this season, as Texas runs an incredibly versatile system of coverages, fronts and disguises.

If Muschamp can find the right combination of those three things again on Saturday, his win-streak against Kiffin will officially begin.

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