“As a coach, it’s hurting the kids”: Jimbo Fisher slams Lane Kiffin over Ole Miss staff controversy

Jimbo Fisher is tired of the Lane Kiffin Show at Ole Miss, as Kiffin, with the main reason, is no longer the Rebels' coach. Fisher, a former Florida State coach who won a national championship and taught at Texas A&M from 2018 to 2023, aimed at the former Rebels coach in a famous tirade.


Fisher said Wednesday on the ACC Network, “It’s selfish, that’s what it is. It’s stupid,” One day before Ole Miss's College Football Playoff (CFP) quarterfinal matchup with Miami.


“Here’s why I say that. He wanted to coach and thought he didn’t get his way. ‘So, everybody get on the plane with me, or you don’t have a job.”

He makes them all go. Then, because it appears that you don't truly care about the children, he goes down there and takes a PR hit.




Kiffin left Ole Miss late last year to take a position at LSU, bringing several assistant coaches with him.


If all the outgoing coaches had departed at that point, the Rebels would have been left with a bare-bones coaching staff for the CFP, which would have prompted Kiffin to eventually relent and allow his assistants to remain.


Despite the Rebels defeating the third-ranked Bulldogs, 39-34, Jimbo Fisher alleged that Kiffin didn’t believe his former team would advance past Georgia in the second round.


“Here’s where he screwed up. He thought they’re going to lose to Georgia, and the portal thing was going to be all over with,” Fisher added.

“He said, ‘Oh, I’ll look like a hero.’ Now, he’s got egg on his face because the real Lane came back out. You know what I’m saying? And if those guys were allowed to coach the first game, they should be allowed to coach. Because those kids are doing something that you get one time in your life to ever do. That team and those guys. One time. And as a coach, listen, I’ve left a job. I get that. But if you took them on and said they’re never coming back, that’s fine. You set the rules of the game. You don’t change the rules in the middle of the game.”


“As a coach, it’s hurting the kids, and that pisses me off.”

Transfer portal turmoil looms over Ole Miss ahead of semifinal clash

No 6. Due to Ole Miss's unexpected triumph over Georgia, the team's semifinal matchup with 10th-seeded Miami on Thursday falls squarely within the crucial transfer portal window. Lane Kiffin has little time to onboard his coaches at LSU and add new players because the college football transfer portal opened on Jan. 2 and closes Jan. 16.

Ole Miss offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. and running backs coach Kevin Smith will coach Thursday night despite being LSU-bound after the season, while tight ends coach Joe Cox and receivers coach George McDonald are not expected to be on the sideline, according to ESPN. As Kiffin seeks to rebuild the Tigers, this recruiting window is crucial.

Quarterback Demond Williams Jr. signed a $4 million NIL contract with Washington in late December, but he appears to have reneged on it, and most reports imply that the LSU Tigers will be involved. Washington is so angered by the issue that the school will consider legal action against Williams Jr., claiming that the contract was legally binding and that he cannot reenter the portal.

Ole Miss is a three-point underdog on Thursday, and Kiffin is unlikely to attend the game after the turmoil last week over whether he would attend the quarterfinal win.

Also read: Jimbo Fisher: Who is the record-breaking head coach to get fired by Texas A&M?




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