Zxavian Harris rips Lane Kiffin over 'slap in the face' to Ole Miss, per report
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Despite being led by Lane Kiffin to its first College Football Playoff berth, Ole Miss football has proven it doesn’t need Kiffin to advance to the semifinals.
The Rebels (13-1) beat Georgia (12-2) in the Sugar Bowl 39-34 on Jan. 1 in the CFP quarterfinals.
Led by Pete Golding, the Rebels’ former defensive coordinator who is now 2-0 as a head coach, Ole Miss will face Miami in the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 8 (6:30 p.m. CT, ESPN) at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. If the Rebels win, they’ll play the winner of the Peach Bowl between Indiana and Oregon in the CFP championship in Miami on Jan. 19.
Prior to the Sugar Bowl Yahoo Sports reported that Kiffin, who took the LSU head coaching job on Nov. 30, may attend the game. He reportedly expressed interest in joining broadcasters Sean McDonough and Greg McElroy in the ESPN booth during the game, according to On3. Ole Miss players weren’t very fond of the idea.
“That’s what Kiffin tried to do. He tried to be a damn announcer … trying to be a troll,” Ole Miss defensive tackle Zxavian Harris told On3. “We were going to troll him. We got something for him. He was just trying to steal our shine. That’s all he tried to do.”
The booth appearance never happened, and instead Kiffin opted to stay in Baton Rouge to watch LSU women’s basketball’s SEC opener vs Kentucky.
Harris characterized Kiffin’s departure as “like a slap in the face and then a backhand. We took that personally.”
“… when Coach Golding came in, they saw a difference in how a real head coach is supposed to be, and you’ve seen how we’ve come together,” Harris told On3.
Since Kiffin’s decision to leave, Golding has been everything Ole Miss has needed in a head coach, leading the Rebels to the CFP semifinals. Players have rallied behind him as he’s stepped into the role of head coach for the first time in his career.
“He’s been ready for this role. It was just a matter of time,” linebacker Princewill Umanmielen told the Clarion Ledger. “Now, he’s in the position that he’s in, and he embraced it 100%. He’s doing what he does best: being a leader.”
Will Ole Miss lose LSU-affiliated coaches before Fiesta Bowl?
According to a report by ESPN, a handful of Ole Miss coaches joining Kiffin at LSU could be unavailable for the Rebels’ semifinals appearance.
The status of offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr, tight ends coach Joe Cox, wide receivers coach George McDonald and running backs coach Kevin Smith is uncertain for the Jan. 8 game. The coaches stayed with Ole Miss for its first two CFP games.
Tia Reid covers Jackson State sports for the Clarion Ledger. Email her at treid@usatodayco.com and follow her on X @tiareid65.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Lane Kiffin ripped by Ole Miss’ Zxavian Harris over Sugar Bowl rumors
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