Lane Kiffin Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin answers questions from the press after a college football game between Mississippi State and Ole Miss at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Miss., on Friday, Nov. 28, 2025. Ole Miss defeated Mississippi State 38-19 in the Egg Bowl.

Things got hairy in college football over the weekend. The Ole Miss Rebels defeated their Rivals, the Mississippi State Bulldogs, on Friday to finish the regular season 11-1, just about guaranteeing a spot in the college football playoff.

Normally, things would be great after arguably the most successful season in program history. However, head coach Lane Kiffin announced on Sunday that he would be leaving the program to become the next head coach of the LSU Tigers, and that he wouldn’t be allowed to coach the Rebels through a playoff run.

“After a lot of prayer and time spent with family, I made the difficult decision to accept the head coaching position at LSU.

“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.

“While I am looking forward to a new start with a unique opportunity at LSU, I will forever cherish the incredible six years I spent at Ole Miss and will be rooting hard for the team to complete their mission and bring a championship to Oxford.”

However, the Rebels will be getting at least one major coach back who originally made the trip to Baton Rouge, according to On3.

Fans reacted to the news on social media.

“So Lane Kiffin could not coach the team in the playoffs because he took another job! But the offensive coordinator followed him and took Lsu job, but he can go back and coach the offense in the playoffs! Laughable,” one fan wrote on Twitter.

“Uhhh so they’ll let him coach but not Kiffin?” someone else wrote.

“Awesome move by Ole Miss and LSU! Will be interesting to see how Ole Miss fans treat Weis knowing he’s leaving after the season,” one fan added.

It’ll be interesting to see if the Kiffin ends up being allowed to return for a playoff run as well.

About Qwame Skinner

Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.