$91 million head coach named ‘supervillain’ after joining major college football program

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. | Matt Bush / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Lane Kiffin left Ole Miss to become LSU’s head coach on Dec. 1, 2025, a move that capped one of the busiest coaching cycles in recent memory and immediately reshaped the SEC landscape.

The decision drew sharp attention because Kiffin departed after securing the program’s first-ever College Football Playoff appearance and before postseason play, all while the sport was in the middle of critical recruiting and transfer-portal windows.

Lane Kiffin's contract with LSU is a seven-year deal worth $91 million, which pays him approximately $13 million annually. The contract includes performance bonuses, such as additional payments for winning the SEC title or advancing in the CFP.

After accepting the LSU job, Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter denied Kiffin’s request to finish the season with the Rebels, creating public tension and fueling criticism in Oxford over the timing and optics of leaving for a conference rival.

Against that backdrop, USA TODAY’s Blake Toppmeyer labeled Kiffin a “supervillain” in the modern college football narrative, arguing LSU is precisely the type of program capable of embracing that persona.

"On Kiffin's way out of Mississippi, he trampled on the redemption story he’d spent years authoring in Oxford, and he surrendered some of the goodwill he’d earned. So what? LSU is just the type of program that can embrace being a supervillain," Toppmeyer wrote. "To quote LSU athletic director Verge Ausberry, Kiffin is 'a big enough personality to operate in a state full of big personalities.'"

"I’ve got but one question: How will Kiffin handle the pressure and scrutiny at a job that will demand national championships? He’s done his best work while coaching Florida Atlantic and Ole Miss in an underdog role, removed from the brightest spotlight."

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

Kiffin’s résumé includes head-coaching stints at Florida Atlantic (where he rebuilt the program), Tennessee (brief and controversial), USC (high expectations with mixed results), and Ole Miss from 2020–25.

In Oxford, he compiled a 55–19 record, becoming one of the most successful coaches in program history and delivering three straight double-digit win seasons for the first time at Ole Miss.

Since taking the LSU job, Kiffin has already begun reshaping the roster through the transfer portal, landing the nation’s top-ranked transfer class with 40 commitments headlined by quarterback Sam Leavitt (Arizona State), offensive tackle Jordan Seaton (Colorado), and edge rusher Princewill Umanmielen (Ole Miss).

LSU carries a recent national-championship pedigree and significant donor expectations, with annual goals centered on SEC titles and national contention. That standard, combined with intense fan and media scrutiny in Louisiana, raises the bar as Kiffin shifts from an underdog or rebuild role at FAU and Ole Miss to a must-deliver position where championships define success.

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