LSU coach Lane Kiffin regrets prolonging Ole Miss drama

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LSU football head coach Lane Kiffin was the main character of the offseason's coaching carousel. With Kiffin's Ole Miss team set for a College Football Playoff run, Kiffin accepted the LSU job, making an unprecedented move. Ole Miss promoted Pete Golding and Kiffin didn't coach Ole Miss in the playoff.

Kiffin's exit was messy. Rumors about Kiffin's future swirled for weeks as Ole Miss was in the midst of an historic season. Florida and LSU were both after Kiffin as Ole Miss offered its own contract extension. The longer Kiffin went without signing the Ole Miss offer, the more evident it became that he was leaving.

Kiffin's depature for one of Ole Miss's top rivals, LSU, created a complicated situation. Most of Kiffin's offensive staff was following him to LSU, but those same assistants stayed on to coach Ole Miss in the playoff. Kiffin wanted to coach the playoff and plead his case to Ole Miss AD Keith Carter, which only made the situation messier as it dragged on.

Speaking to ESPN on Thursday, Kiffin said he has some regrets about the way the saga played out.

"I wish I would have gone in when I met with Keith and said, 'I've made the decision to go,' I wish I would have just said, 'Hey, I'd like to coach the team,' and he'd say, 'No.' And I'd say, 'Hey, OK, I appreciate it.' [I wish I'd] move on [and] never even discussed it again," Kiffin said to ESPN.

LSU and Ole Miss are set to face off in Oxford in Week 3 of the 2026 college football season. The drama around Kiffin facing his former team should make it one of the most anticipated games of the year.

This article originally appeared on LSU Wire: LSU coach Lane Kiffin regrets prolonging Ole Miss drama

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