Paul Finebaum names SEC college football coach that’s ’always looking to leave’

Paul Finebaum, radio and ESPN television personality, gets ready to speak on television near activities outside the Superdome, before of the College Football Playoff National Championship game in New Orleans. | Ken Ruinard / staff via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Lane Kiffin’s sudden departure from Ole Miss to take the LSU job, announced on Sunday, concluded one of the most chaotic chapters of this year’s SEC coaching carousel.

Kiffin, who built Ole Miss into a consistent 10-win program and compiled a 55-19 record over six seasons, will not remain to coach the Rebels through their impending College Football Playoff appearance.

Reporting from multiple outlets, Kiffin lined up several offensive assistants to join him in Baton Rouge and told staffers bluntly they could either travel now or risk losing their jobs at LSU.

Other reporters noted that Ole Miss worked to retain core assistants and even proposed aggressive staff salary adjustments.

While Kiffin disputed parts of the reporting, saying staffers must make their own choices, the coaching departures and the threat of roster disruption were enough to alter planning for a playoff-bound program.

LSU reportedly offered a multi-year package in the $12-13M per year range that would place Kiffin among college football’s highest-paid head coaches.

Even still, Kiffin's decision hasn't slowed criticism, particularly from major SEC voice Paul Finebaum, who made a bold statement on the former Ole Miss coach on Sunday's episode of "The Matt Barrie Show." 

"I can’t come up with any other reason," Finebaum said. "He coveted the Florida job last year. Lane Kiffin is always looking to leave. I’ll leave the psychology to someone else, but he’s not hard to figure out. He’s never satisfied."

Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin walks off the field during a college football game between Mississippi State and Ole Miss at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Mississippi. The Egg Bowl game marks the 122nd meeting between the two teams. | Ayrton Breckenridge/Clarion Ledger / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Kiffin's career has featured high-profile exits and rebirths, a short stint in the NFL, a one-season run at Tennessee, a controversial USC dismissal in 2013, three years under Nick Saban at Alabama, a three-year rebuild at Florida Atlantic, and then a rapid rise at Ole Miss. 

Finebaum's comments on Sunday that he “is always looking to leave” reflect a pattern that many have criticized regarding Kiffin.

With Kiffin moving on once more, Ole Miss must now shore up coaching continuity and convince recruits and the transfer-portal players to stay with interim leadership. 

Meanwhile, for LSU, the hire speeds up its coaching reset and immediately provides the Tigers with a proven offensive architect and a modern recruiting and portal approach.

That said, it also comes with massive expectations for a program that has shown little patience for mediocrity.

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