‘Leaves Programs in Shambles’ — CFB Analyst Highlights 1 Major Difference in Lane Kiffin’s Return to Ole Miss for Heated Matchup
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Less than a year after he departed Ole Miss to become the new college football head coach of the LSU Tigers, Lane Kiffin is back in Oxford for his first matchup against his former team.
As one can imagine, there are several fun storylines leading up to Saturday night’s LSU-Ole Miss matchup. Some are even raising caution flags ahead of tonight’s matchup between the two top-10 opponents.
Lane Kiffin Set for Trouble in Oxford?
While looking ahead at this week’s college football games, CBS Sports spent part of Saturday previewing tonight’s big matchup. During that preview, former Ohio State quarterback Cardale Jones explained why this matchup may not be so easy for Kiffin’s 2-0 Tigers. In other words, this Rebels team isn’t like the ones Kiffin has left and matched up with in years past.
“Lane Kiffin usually leaves programs in shambles,” Jones said. “This Ole Miss team, this program is not in shambles. Once you look at the teams and players that he was able to retain from leaving to go to LSU this will be the best team he has went against as far as where he coached the previous year.”
Kiffin previously coached at Tennessee for one season before departing for USC, where he remained for four seasons. Then he took a step down as Alabama’s offensive coordinator for three years before becoming Florida Atlantic’s head coach from 2017 to 2019. Then, Kiffin’s adventures took him to Ole Miss from 2020 to 2025 before finally landing at LSU in November of 2025.
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Like the seventh-ranked Tigers, the eighth-ranked Rebels are also 2-0. Yet, after Saturday’s matchup, only one of these squads will still be undefeated.
As noted, the Rebels seem like a very worthy opponent for Kiffin’s Tigers. Ole Miss already beat one ranked opponent, toppling Louisville 41-38 in Week 1. Then they rolled over Charlotte 41-9 last week. Can they score 41 points for three games in a row? Again, it won’t be so easy against LSU.
The Tigers held their Week 1 opponent, Clemson, to just 10 points, while scoring 51 of their own. Then, LSU demolished Louisiana Tech 45-14 last week.
Needless to say, it’s a big week for both of these programs, and while LSU is generally viewed as the favorite, anything can happen on game day. Kiffin knows that all too well.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.
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