Is it just me or does this defy logic?
https://www.usatoday.com/story/spor...fin-near-deal-ole-miss-head-coach/4361392002/
https://www.usatoday.com/story/spor...fin-near-deal-ole-miss-head-coach/4361392002/
Kiffin to Ole Miss?
- Thread starter MWittman
- Start date
Dean:
Let's take a good, hard look at the "Lane Train," shall we?
While it's debatable whether my powers of persuasion are distinguished, in the matter of anything Lane Kiffin, facts tend to prevail over rhetorical skill.
Born on third base, Lane Kiffin is a walking, talking symbol of the perils of nepotism. The son of a longtime NFL assistant, Kiffin was hired in 2007 to lead the Oakland Raiders by its mercurial owner, Al Davis. Paid over four-million dollars in the two-year period he coached, Kiffin produced a 5-15 record, which saw him achieve a 1-4 record before being dismissed not even halfway through the 2008 season. When laying out his case against Kiffin in a press conference, Davis featured Kiffin's puerile behavior, which figured prominently in Kiffin's dismissal and announced Kiffin would not receive $2.4 million in pay. Kiffin filed a grievance and ultimately lost. While with the Raiders, Kiffin essentially earned $280,000 for every win.
Following the retirement of Phillip Fulmer, the University of Tennessee made the error of hiring Kiffin, paying him $2.3 million per year. A tenure known more for his stoking feuds with fellow SEC coaches in the provincial hothouse known as Twitter, Kiffin won seven games against six losses. For achieving mediocrity, Kiffin was paid over $300,000 for every win. Following his departure after one season, fans and supporters of the Volunteer football program mobilized and appealed with the Knoxville City Council's Public Properties and Facilities to name a waste water treatment plant the “Lane Kiffin Sewage Center."
Arriving at USC, Kiffin faced a raft of NCAA sanctions, but still inherited a stable of talent. Year one saw a handful of close losses, including a close loss to ND, but a win over UCLA. Year two, however, witnessed a 10-2 record, including wins over both ND and UCLA. This record was achieved despite NCAA sanctions, and although USC was prohibited from competing in a bowl game that season, USC was expected to return 16 starters for the 2012 season.
In year three, the "Lane Train" began slipping off the rails, swiftly dropping from the number ranking after losing to Stanford, and out of the polls after dropping FIVE of his LAST SIX GAMES. To complete the season, Lane led USC to one if its worst post-season losses in school history, a Sun Bowl blowout loss to GT.
By 2013, the "Lane Train" had completely derailed at USC, going 3-1 before getting thumped by ASU in week five. As most are aware, in one of the most publicized dismissals in modern sports history, USC AD Pat Haden pulled Kiffin into a janitor's closet at LAX to hand him his walking papers. A 2 a.m. dismissal, in other words, USC couldn't wait to be rid of him. For pulling off a 28-15 record at USC, Kiffin earned $82,000 a win.
Hired as an assistant at Alabama, he established a reputation for skillfully developing quarterbacks, but by the end of his short tenure with the Tide, according to a current Alabama assistant, every assistant coach on staff wanted to "beat his as*."
I won't bother getting into his record at FAU; it's irrelevant because of the low-quality opponents FAU plays. He may have had winning records in two of his three seasons, but if past is prologue, Kiffin won't fare any better at Ole Miss than he did at UT and USC.
If we view Kiffin's career as a puzzle, he may be a astute quarterback coach, but he is severely deficient in the art of organization and management required to be a successful head coach.
I will enjoy watching this arrogant SOB crash and burn in the SEC.