By Nelson EspinalShareNewsweek is a Trust Project memberLSU head coach Lane Kiffin is returning to Oxford next fall, though he won't be wearing his typical visor.
On Sept. 19, the Ole Miss Rebels will square off against the LSU Tigers, opening up SEC play for both teams during Week 3.
It will be Kiffin's first time back at the school where he re-established himself as a premier college football coach. When he took over Ole Miss, the program was a middling SEC school.
However, by investing in the transfer portal and bringing an explosive offensive system, the Rebels became College Football Playoff contenders.
...This season, Ole Miss entered as a legitimate SEC challenger. They went on to secure an 11-1 record and are hosting a first-round CFB game.
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Ole Miss almost made the SEC Championship Game, missing out due to Alabama's victory over the Auburn Tigers in the Iron Bowl.
However, in the middle of the season, rumors began to circulate that the Florida Gators were interested in Kiffin, and the courtship began. It became a long shot that he would land in the Swamp, though another player would soon enter the mix.
The LSU Tigers fired Brian Kelly in the middle of the season, and then they were linked to Ole Miss's head coach, sparking a full-court press among Florida, LSU, and Ole Miss to secure him for their school.
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Eventually, it came down to LSU and Ole Miss, and leading up to the Egg Bowl against Mississippi State, Kiffin remained coy about his future, hinting that he was entertaining a move.
How did Lane Kiffin reveal his move to LSU?
Ole Miss set a deadline for Kiffin — the day after the Egg Bowl — as his time to reveal his final decision. That day came and went with no word, but on the following day, it was announced that he would be joining LSU, leaving Ole Miss in the middle of a playoff push after the school denied him the ability to finish out the season.
"After a lot of prayer and time spent with family, I made the difficult decision to accept the head coaching position at LSU," Kiffin wrote in a post on X.
"I was hoping to complete a historic six-season run with this year's team by leading Ole Miss through the playoffs, capitalizing on the team's incredible success and their commitment to finish strong, and investing everything into a playoff run with guardrails in place to protect the program in any areas of concern.
"My request to do so was denied by Keith Carter despite the team also asking him to allow me to keep coaching them so they could better maintain their high level of performance. Unfortunately, that means Friday's Egg Bowl was my last game coaching the Rebels."
His exit was full of drama, though he has settled in at LSU and will prepare to face his former school in September.
More news: Notre Dame Gets Good News on Marcus Freeman’s NFL Pursuit
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