Why Lane Kiffin isn't coaching Ole Miss in 2025 College Football Playoff after LSU move originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The end of the college football season is all about who is in the playoff picture and who has qualified for a bowl game. A secondary aspect of the end of the season is the coaching carousel. Movement happens all over college football as coaches look for the next opportunity to advance their careers.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementAmidst all the shuffle, Lane Kiffin decided to leave Ole Miss, stay in the conference, and become the head coach at LSU. While it is rare for coaches to stay in conference, Kiffin's situation is even more unique because the Rebels are bound for the College Football Playoff. Typically, when a coach takes another job, they leave their current team behind.
Kiffin, though, has led Ole Miss to the 2025 College Football Playoff, and wanted to have his cake and eat it too. The new LSU head coach wanted to continue coaching the Rebels through the playoffs, but Ole Miss wanted to move on from Kiffin after he accepted a new job and left the school.
Here is more on why Kiffin isn't coaching for Ole Miss in the 2025 College Football Playoff.
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AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIs Lane Kiffin coaching Ole Miss in College Football Playoff?
No, Kiffin won't be the head coach for Ole Miss when the College Football Playoff begins.
Kiffin wanted to coach the Rebels through the playoffs, but the school didn't want him to remain as coach after he accepted the job at LSU. Typically, when a coach leaves for a new job, an interim coach will coach any postseason games. Kiffin wanted to make this national championship run with Ole Miss and still leave the school to go to LSU next season.
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Why isn't Lane Kiffin coaching Ole Miss in College Football Playoff?
If it were up to Kiffin, he would have. During the chaos of his decision, reports surfaced that he threatened to poach the Rebels' top players and staff if he wasn't allowed to keep coaching.
With Kiffin set to leave for a conference rival, Ole Miss didn't want to continue its playoff run with a coach who didn't want to be there. The Rebels wanted to go ahead and have Kiffin move on so that they could then turn the team over to someone who wanted to be at Ole Miss.
Kiffin could have guaranteed he coached Ole Miss in the 2025 CFP if he had stayed at the school. Instead, he decided to leave for LSU, and Ole Miss wants to move on from him.
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Who is Ole Miss new head coach?
With Kiffin gone and not permitted by Ole Miss to continue coaching, Pete Golding, Kiffin's defensive coordinator while at Ole Miss, was named the head coach. While it was initially expected to be an interim announcement, Golding was actually named the permanent replacement and head coach at Ole Miss.
Kiffin is in charge of forming his new staff at LSU. Part of the deal that got him to the Tigers was an increase in staff funding. Kiffin had several members of the Ole Miss coaching staff in mind to take with him, and gave them an ultimatum. He reportedly told them that if they weren't on the flight to Baton Rouge on Sunday with him that they wouldn't be on his staff.
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