A CFP run without Lane Kiffin? There's a smarter move for Ole MissMatt Hayes, USA TODAYWed, November 26, 2025 at 2:19 AM UTC·5 min readLet me take you to the intersection of Lunacy Avenue and Spite Street, where Ole Miss, longtime afterthought in the SEC, is willfully torpedoing what could be the greatest season in school history.
Rebels coach Lane Kiffin may or may not want out of Oxford, and the school wants an answer the day after Friday’s Egg Bowl against rival Mississippi State.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementKiffin wants to coach Ole Miss in the College Football Playoff, where the Rebels dropped one spot to No. 7 after Tuesday’s Top 25 poll release and can wrap up a spot in the 12-team field by beating Mississippi State.
Ole Miss wants to move on like a jilted lover if Kiffin decides he’s moving onto LSU or Florida. But why?
CFP winners, losers: Miami, Ole Miss lead CFP rankings headlines
Why would Ole Miss willfully prohibit Kiffin, who gives the Rebels the best chance at advancing deep in the playoff, from coaching the team? And give give it to quarterbacks coach Joe Judge, whose last tenure as head coach included 10 wins in two seasons with the New York Giants.
Minnesota vs. Wisconsin: 134 meetings, first met in 1890, play for Paul Bunyan's Axe.
Auburn vs. Georgia: 130 meetings, first played in 1892, called "Deep South's Oldest Rivalry."
Virginia vs. North Carolina: 130 meetings, first played in 1892, called "South's Oldest Rivalry."
Oregon vs, Oregon State: 129 meetings, first played in 1894, called "The Civil War."
Cincinnati vs. Miami (Ohio): 128 meetings, first played in 1888, they play for the "Victory Bell" in the "Battle for the Bell."
Cal vs. Stanford: 128 meetings, first met in 1892, in what's called the "Big Game", and they play for The Axe.
Indiana vs. Purdue: 126 meetings, first played in 1891, called the "Old Oaken Bucket", which they play for.
Army vs. Navy: 125 meetings, first played in 1890, simply called "The Army-Navy" game.
Kansas vs. Kansas State: 123 meetings, first played in 1902, called the "Sunflower Showdown" and they play for the Governor's Cup.
TCU vs. Baylor: 121 meetings, first played in 1899, called the "Bluebonnet Battle" and they play for the Bluebonnet Shield.
Kansas vs. Missouri. 121 meetings, first met in 1891, called the "Border War" and they play for the Indian War Drum.
Ole Miss vs. Mississippi: 121 meetings, first met in 1901, called the "Egg Bowl" and they play for the Golden Egg Trophy.
Kentucky vs. Tennessee: 121 meetings, first met in 1893, no cool name or trophy just good, old-fashion border disdain.
Clemson vs. South Carolina: 121 meetings, first met in 1896, game is called the "Palmetto Bowl."
Texas vs. Oklahoma: 121 meetings, first met in 1900, game is called "Red River Rivalry" and they play for the Golden Hat.1 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Minnesota vs. Wisconsin: 134 meetings, first met in 1890, play for Paul Bunyan's Axe.1 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Minnesota vs. Wisconsin: 134 meetings, first met in 1890, play for Paul Bunyan's Axe.2 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Auburn vs. Georgia: 130 meetings, first played in 1892, called "Deep South's Oldest Rivalry."3 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Virginia vs. North Carolina: 130 meetings, first played in 1892, called "South's Oldest Rivalry."4 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Oregon vs, Oregon State: 129 meetings, first played in 1894, called "The Civil War."5 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Cincinnati vs. Miami (Ohio): 128 meetings, first played in 1888, they play for the "Victory Bell" in the "Battle for the Bell."6 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Cal vs. Stanford: 128 meetings, first met in 1892, in what's called the "Big Game", and they play for The Axe.7 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Indiana vs. Purdue: 126 meetings, first played in 1891, called the "Old Oaken Bucket", which they play for.8 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Army vs. Navy: 125 meetings, first played in 1890, simply called "The Army-Navy" game.9 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Kansas vs. Kansas State: 123 meetings, first played in 1902, called the "Sunflower Showdown" and they play for the Governor's Cup.10 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
TCU vs. Baylor: 121 meetings, first played in 1899, called the "Bluebonnet Battle" and they play for the Bluebonnet Shield.11 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Kansas vs. Missouri. 121 meetings, first met in 1891, called the "Border War" and they play for the Indian War Drum.12 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Ole Miss vs. Mississippi: 121 meetings, first met in 1901, called the "Egg Bowl" and they play for the Golden Egg Trophy.13 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Kentucky vs. Tennessee: 121 meetings, first met in 1893, no cool name or trophy just good, old-fashion border disdain.14 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Clemson vs. South Carolina: 121 meetings, first met in 1896, game is called the "Palmetto Bowl."15 / 15Golden Egg, few axes and a bucket. See college football's longest running FBS rivalries
Texas vs. Oklahoma: 121 meetings, first met in 1900, game is called "Red River Rivalry" and they play for the Golden Hat.This isn’t college basketball, and Ole Miss isn’t Michigan with the Fab Five. All Steve Fisher did was roll the ball on the floor, and five freshmen destined for the NBA took Michigan all the way to the national championship game after coach Bill Frieder took the Arizona State job and was told to go scratch by Michigan prior to the NCAA tournament.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIf he doesn’t want us, we don’t want him.
Brilliant. Apparently, Ole Miss doesn’t want a potential magical run in the CFP, either.
This isn’t that difficult, people. Let’s say Kiffin chooses LSU or Florida, both of which would do anything to hire him — including allowing him to coach Ole Miss in the CFP.
Will he or won't he? Why would he? Lane Kiffin says he loves it at Ole Miss. We'll see
More money, less fame: So you want millions in a buyout? It may cost you your career
Kiffin isn’t going to be torn about who he’s working for; he’s playing for the national flipping championship. Meanwhile, Ole Miss can hire a coach, too, with the understanding he’s not part of the place until the CFP run is over.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementSure it’s wonky and unlike anything we’ve seen, but so was playing football during a pandemic because you couldn’t bear dealing with the consequences of not playing.
Why in the world would Ole Miss willingly bear the consequences of playing in the CFP without Kiffin?
A look at the highlights of the Week 4 CFP poll.
The Fortunate
No. 3 Texas A&M
There are seven other SEC teams in the CFP Top 25. The Aggies haven't played one.
Notre Dame's schedule outside of both losses is comical. Ohio State's schedule outside of a season-opening win over Texas isn't much better.
But this remarkably odd scheduling quirk for Texas A&M tops them all. The Aggies play at No. 16 Texas Friday, which will give them one game against the SEC's top half of the 16-team league.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementNo. 6 Oregon
So let me get this straight. Oregon beats No. 18 USC at home by 15, and that apparently is a more impactful win than Ole Miss winning at No. 8 Oklahoma by eight.
What are we doing here, everyone?
"The committee has been waiting for (Oregon) to have a signature win to put them where we thought they should be," CFP committee chairman Hunter Yurachek said.
So because the committee believes Oregon is a top-6 team, the actual resume isn't as important?
Oregon's loss: at home by 10 to No. 2 Indiana, Ole Miss' loss is at No. 4 Georgia by 8.
Oregon has no other wins over current CFP Top 25, Ole Miss has 35-point win over No. 24 Tulane.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBut yeah, eye test.
The Frantic
No. 7 Ole Miss
It's clear where this thing is headed: beat Mississippi State on Friday, and the Rebels host a first round playoff game. Lose, and they're out of the CFP.
When asked about Ole Miss' poll prospects without Kiffin, Yurachek danced around the question and left wiggle room. By rule, the committee could use Kiffin not coaching Ole Miss as a reason to drop them from the final poll.
"It is in the protocol, but I'm not sure we have a data point to use that as part of the protocol," Yurachek said. "We will not have seen the team play without a coach."
No. 12 Miami
Maybe the CFP selection committee is waiting for Miami and Notre Dame to finish the season at 10-2, and then (and only then) will the Canes' head-to-head win over the Irish come into play.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBecause Yurachek used procedural nonsense to explain how Miami ― which beat Notre Dame and has the same record with similar schedule strengths ― really was measured against the Irish. Sort of.
"They were compared this week, but compared in same pod with Alabama and one-loss BYU," Yurachek said.
And if you think that's confusing, wait until the committee explains Notre Dame over Miami when they're both 10-2.
No. 8 Oklahoma
Think about this very possible scenario: Alabama beats No. 3 Texas A&M in the SEC championship game, and qualifies automatically for the CFP. Texas A&M won't fall out of the poll.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe committee then chooses to keep Miami and Notre Dame (to eliminate the Notre Dame question), and the Sooners are on the short end of the move. In that scenario, Oklahoma, Miami and Notre Dame would be in the same "pod" when analyzing the teams.
All three teams would be 10-2. Oklahoma would have the best win at SEC champion Alabama, Miami would have a win over Notre Dame, and the Irish would have what? The eye test ― and a month of love from the committee.
Matt Hayes is the senior national college football writer for USA TODAY Sports Network. Follow him on X at @MattHayesCFB.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ole Miss must let Lane Kiffin coach in CFP before both sides go own way
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