Kiffin Skips Sugar Bowl for Women’s Basketball Game
It turns out that Lane Kiffin won’t be catching his old Ole Miss players in action during the Sugar Bowl this Thursday.
After leaving the Rebels for LSU last November, Kiffin opted not to take a coaching role in this year’s College Football Playoff. He’s reportedly mulling over attending the Sugar Bowl alongside Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry but has decided instead to watch the LSU women’s basketball team face Kentucky, as noted by a report.
In a response on X, Kiffin seemed to confirm this by posting a tiger emoji while tagging LSU’s account. He also shared a screenshot showing College GameDay analysts picking Georgia as favorites to defeat Ole Miss in the Sugar Bowl.
Interestingly, plans for enhanced security were reportedly in the works for Kiffin’s potential arrival at the Caesars Superdome. This would add yet another twist to his already unusual departure.
Kiffin, who stepped in as LSU’s head coach after Brian Kelly was let go, even made an appearance during LSU’s recent bowl game broadcast on ESPN.
If Kiffin had attended the Sugar Bowl, it would’ve been quite a different atmosphere.
Last season, Kiffin led the Rebels to an impressive 11-1 record, which marked one of the best seasons in the program’s history and secured a spot in the playoffs.
However, things became complicated when Kiffin signed a seven-year contract worth $13 million annually. He expressed a desire to coach Ole Miss in the postseason, but the university declined his request.
Keith Carter, Ole Miss’s vice president of athletics, mentioned that it was pretty clear for weeks that if Kiffin wasn’t the head coach at Ole Miss, he wouldn’t be coaching in the playoffs.
Following Kiffin’s departure, Pete Golding took over as head coach, leading the Rebels to victory against Tulane. Meanwhile, offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. has returned to coaching duties for the CFP game.
Ole Miss is set to play Georgia State in the third game of the quarterfinals on Thursday. The winner will advance to face Miami, who recently defeated Ohio State.
