Three schools want Lane but only one will emerge as the winner

Three SEC schools. One winner. That’s what the courtship of Lane Kiffin is all about. If we believe everything that’s out there either in print or on the broadcast waves, Lane will put an end to all the speculation sometime after 6^th-ranked Ole Miss (10-1, 6-1 SEC) faces off with Mississippi State (5-6, 1-6 SEC) in the Egg Bowl (12 noon, ABC).

The choices are (1) remain in Oxford where the Rebels will be in the College Football Playoff should they come away with a win at the school Ole Miss fans call Moo U; (2) take the job at LSU (7-4, 3-4 SEC), which has a Saturday date in Norman with 8^th-ranked Oklahoma (9-2, 5-2 SEC); or (3) take the job at Florida (3-8, 2-6 SEC), which plays arch-rival Florida State (5-6) Saturday at The Swamp (4:30 p.m., ABC).

If he elects to remain at Ole Miss, both LSU and the Gators will be in scramble mode. So much attention has been given to landing Kiffin that nobody has a clue about a backup plan. Surely, there is one.

Isn’t there?

Ole Miss fans seem resigned to Kiffin reinventing himself at either LSU or Florida. The big question will be whether the Ole Miss admin allows Kiffin to continue coaching the Rebels through the College Football Playoff. General consensus among media types is that it would be foolish although Matt Hayes of USA Today seems to be the lone dissenting voice who favors Kiffin leading the team into its first ever playoff. 

If Kiffin goes, who would Ole Miss select? Among the popular names are Jon Sumrall, the head coach at Tulane, and South Florida coach Alex Golesh, who may or may not have a deal to coach Arkansas. Sumrall has drawn considerable attention from Auburn faithful, particularly since he cut his head coaching teeth at nearby Troy.  There is also the boy genius, Charlie Weis Jr., Lane Kiffin’s 32-year-old offensive coordinator. Is he ready to be a head coach? Figure someone is going to think so relatively soon.

LSU is interesting. In what seems to be a desperation attempt to earn Kiffin’s trust, LSU announced Wednesday that it has formally fired Brian Kelly without cause and will pay him the $54 million and change it owes him. Kelly lawyered up. If he had taken LSU to court the damage settlement could have been far more than $54 million. It’s difficult to imagine Jimmy Sexton (Kiffin’s agent) agreeing to any deal with a school with something like that hanging over it. It is entirely possible it’s a case of too little, too late.

But what if it isn’t? LSU has a rabid fan base and has a recent history (2019) of winning a national championship. Recent history is certainly on LSU’s side. Even though Kelly didn’t win a national title, he did win 34 games in three-plus years. Florida, meanwhile, has had four losing seasons since 2020 and six since 2013.

If LSU doesn’t land Kiffin, Sumrall is right down the road at Tulane. Joe Brady, who was the offensive genius behind the 2019 national title, calls the plays for the Buffalo Bills.

And finally, there is Florida. It has been very quiet on the Florida coaching search front. While media types seem to think Florida finishes third in this three-horse race, there are some confident former Gators who believe strongly that Lane comes to Gainesville. And this is for reasons that go beyond all the ties to the University of Florida and the longtime admiration of Steven Orr Spurrier.

Florida needs a home run hire. Lane Kiffin is a grand slam.

There are some rumors out there that Southern Cal’s Lincoln Riley and Clemson’s Dabo Swinney are available if Florida calls. Maybe those aren’t home runs, but maybe standup triples. Jedd Fisch, the head coach at Washington, keeps having his name thrust into the Florida search. He’s a Gator alum, bestest of buds with Philadelphia Eagles executive VP and GM Howie Roseman, and he worked as Spurrier’s grad assistant for two years. Fisch has also resuscitated nearly dead programs at Arizona and now at Washington.

So will the Gators win this battle to hire Lane Kiffin? Whether he chooses Florida or chooses Ole Miss or LSU, the news will almost certainly dwarf the Florida-Florida State game. The Gators and Seminoles come into the game with losing records. That hasn’t happened in decades. FSU could get a bowl game with a win, but Seminole fans aren’t exactly enamored with the idea they could play in the Boca Raton Bowl. They aren’t exactly enamored with HBC Mike Norvell either, but they can’t afford to fire him without a massive alumni call for garage sales and bake sales to raise sufficient cash.

It is Senior Day at Florida and the Gators can go out with a win for whoever the head coach will be. The Gators are favored by 1.5 points, a slim margin for sure, but the way the media is going all-in for LSU, it’s the kind of squeaker that this kind of season deserves. Win with Lane and a win over FSU will cause celebrations that last long into the night. The pick: Florida. On both counts.

SEC FOOTBALL

Today’s games

No. 3 Texas A&M (11-0, 7-0 SEC) at No. 16 Texas (8-3, 5-2 SEC): The Aggies last won a national championship in 1939. That was back in the days when the Associated Press picked its national champ BEFORE the bowl games. Somehow, the voters picked the Aggies even though Tennessee shut out all 10 of its regular season opponents. The Aggies weren’t that bad. They shut out six of their regular season opponents and went 10-0 as well. This year the Aggies have a chance to finish the regular season unbeaten and with some luck in Atlanta and in the College Football Playoff win a national championship that no one will call into question. Texas has incentive, too. Beat the Aggies and it’s entirely possible the Longhorns can leap past several teams and become a 3-loss CFP team. The Aggies should win this one. The pick: Texas A&M

No. 4 Georgia (10-1, 7-1 SEC) at No. 23 Georgia Tech (9-2): If Alabama loses Saturday, Georgia could make it to Atlanta. Not that this game will matter in that regard, but Georgia is hot right now and Georgia Tech is not. Pitt killed the Tech defense. Georgia will do something similar. The pick: Georgia

No. 6 Ole Miss (10-1, 6-1 SEC) at Mississippi State (5-6, 1-6 SEC): Oh my, the game that everyone in three states will be watching. LSU thinks Lane Kiffin will be coming to Baton Rouge. Florida thinks Lane will be coming to Gainesville. Ole Miss folks are praying he stays in Oxford. Meanwhile, Mississippi State would like to play spoiler. Beat the Rebels and maybe they don’t make the College Football Playoff. Beat the Rebels and maybe they spoil a celebration in Baton Rouge and Gainesville. Beat the Rebels and State fans can make reservations for the tractorcade that will take them to either the Weedwacker in Shreveport or the Birmingham Bowl. In either case, if they lose they are required to stay an extra week. No problem. Shreveport and Birmingham are resorts compared to Starkville. Doesn’t matter, though. The pick: Ole Miss

Saturday’s games

LSU (7-4, 3-4 SEC) at No. 8 Oklahoma (9-2, 5-2 SEC): If LSU wins the Lane Kiffin sweepstakes, then the Tigers will be most inspired in Norman. Doesn’t matter. LSU’s offense sucks and the Oklahoma defense is smothering. Oklahoma is accustomed to winning ugly and this promises to take ugly to new levels. But, remember, ugly is in the eye of the beholder. An ugly 10-2 in Norman is beautiful in the eyes of Sooner fans. The pick: Oklahoma

No. 10 Alabama (9-2, 6-1 SEC) at Auburn (5-6, 1-6 SEC): Kalen DeBoer is hanging on by a thread here. Lose and it’s two straight non-playoff, non SEC championship game seasons. Lose to Auburn and Bama fans have to live with it for an entire year. They take hatred to unprecedented levels in the great state of Alabama. Meanwhile, Auburn has scored 100 points in its last two games after scoring 201 in the first nine games of the year. Interim DJ Durkin has opened up the offense and he’s starting Deuce Knight, the QB of the future and a dual threat, just the kind of QB that gives Alabama fits. Alabama is only a 5.5-point fave, not what you would expect for the nation’s No. 10 team going against a team with a losing record. Can we have the kind of upset that has Bama fans holding their chests and telling Elizabeth they’re coming home? Absolutely. Could DJ be the next Auburn coach? Absolutely. The pick: Auburn

No. 12 Vanderbilt (9-2, 5-2 SEC) at No. 18 Tennessee (8-3, 4-3 SEC): This is Vanderbilt’s Super Bowl. Win and the Commodores remain in the hunt for the College Football Playoff, although they’ll need some help. Win and Diego Pavia almost certainly gets invited to New York for the Heisman ceremonies. Win big and Diego just might win the whole damn thing. Win and it’s the first 10-win season in Vandy history. It’s Senior Day in Knoxville, but the Vols aren’t going anywhere except to a bowl game in Florida. The Vols can talk about all the what might have beens in the world, but it doesn’t change the fact they are a decent team but nothing much to write home about. Incentive is a wonderful thing. The pick: Vanderbilt

Missouri (7-4, 3-4 SEC) at Arkansas (2-9, 0-7 SEC): Eli Drinkwitz signed a contract extension to stay at Mizzou. He’ll bring in a cool $10.7 million per. Arkansas, meanwhile, was jilted by North Texas coach Eric Morris, who picked Okie State over life in Hog Heaven. There are reports that Alex Golesh of South Florida will be the replacement for Sam Pittman but the AD says nothing has been signed, so stay tuned. Meanwhile, Drink is 7-0 against unranked teams. Arkansas has lost eight straight. Make it nine. The pick: Missouri

Kentucky (5-6, 2-5 SEC) at Louisville (7-4): This is a must win for Mark Stoops and Kentucky. Beat Louisville and the Wildcats are going bowling. More important, beat Louisville and Stoops is almost certain to be gainfully employed at Kentucky next year. The Wildcats are capable of playing very well. They’re also capable of stinking it up (see last week against Vandy). Speaking of stinking it up, Louisville has gone from CFP contender to in the tank the last three weeks. The trend will continue. The pick: Kentucky

Clemson (6-5) at South Carolina (4-7, 1-7 SEC): Amid speculation that he’s going to pull up stakes and find a new home after all these years and two national championships at Clemson, Dabo Swinney finds himself needing a win to ensure the Tigers avoid their first losing season since 2010. That’s incentive enough for the Tigers, who are 11 points away from 9-2 and winners of their last three. Like Clemson, South Carolina was supposed to be good this year. They’ve lost four winnable games. Lots of turmoil in the South Carolina camp because Shane Beamer is certain to overhaul his coaching staff. The pick: Clemson