Lane Kiffin Issues Apology to Nick Saban Ahead of Clemson College Football Opener

After a tough week for Lane Kiffin, he appeared to do his part to bury at least one particular hatchet in a College GameDay encounter with his former boss Nick Saban. The relationship between the two men gained extensive coverage over the past week, but with the television cameras present, both at least publicly said all the right things about the other to scuttle any rumors of bad blood.

Saban and Kiffin History

After struggling as the head coach at USC, Kiffin went to work for Saban as Alabama's offensive coordinator at the beginning of 2014. But during the end game of the 2016 season, the relationship seemed to sour. Kiffin took the head coaching job at Florida Atlantic in December, but stayed at Alabama through the College Football Playoff. After a lackluster CFP semifinal performance, Saban decided to speed up Kiffin's move and let him go free a bit earlier than anticipated, with Kiffin's successor Steve Sarkisian instead calling plays for the national title game. Alabama lost that game and many wondered if the lack of familiarity for Sarkisian could have impacted the Tide's 35-31 loss.

Both Coaches Talk It Out

This moment between Coach Saban and Lane Kiffin 🥹 pic.twitter.com/5RXhV2CA8b
— LSU Football (@LSUfootball) September 5, 2026

The two coaches had nothing but kind things to say about each other under the bright lights of TV cameras. Saban went first, admitting, "We met in LA. You were in a tough spot, I was in a tough spot. You did a great job coming in and helping us at Alabama. I can tell you I am so proud of what you've been able to do at every stop. And I know you're going to do a great job here at LSU."

Kiffin was even more direct in his comments, noting, "I've come a long ways and changed a lot of things. Any problems that we had were my fault. Now that I see it from the other side-- I've said it before. Sometimes, it's almost like you grow up and then later on, you realize, 'Man, I'm kind of becoming like my dad.' And so, I feel that way with him, and now I understand why he did the things he did and the way he is. And it's why he's the best to ever do it."

Of course, from FAU, Kiffin eventually springboarded to Ole Miss and now to LSU, where Saban himself won a national title in 2003. Kiffin's intra-conference move ahead of 2026 was controversial and he now finds himself at the center of eligibility issues with a pair of former college football players/NFL training camp invitees. But at least one lingering ghost of Kiffin's past bore hallmarks of having been put to bed by the principal parties involved.

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