Lane Kiffin on facing Nick Saban: 'Maybe this is our last time'

Alex Weberby:Alex Weber•09/23/23

Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin is always thrilled to face off against Nick Saban and is cherishing 2023’s matchup in case it’s the last between the two.

Of course, Kiffin coached under Saban as the Alabama offensive coordinator several years back — a time that Kiffin reflected on ahead of the Ole Miss vs. Alabama game on Saturday in an SEC Network interview. He thanked Saban for helping him rebound after a “rock bottom” time in his life and is grateful to get to coach against him today.

“I have so much appreciation for what Nick Saban did for me. I love going against him and seeing before the game,” said Kiffin.

He then issued an ominous statement on the matchup ahead of its kickoff.

“So, we’re very excited for this opportunity today — and you never know how many more you’ve got,” the Rebel coach added. “Maybe this is our last time. So, we’ll be very excited for this opportunity today, and so much respect for Coach and the Alabama football program.”

Nothing but love from Lane Kiffin towards Coach Saban and the Crimson Tide. However, the intresting part from his comments is his suggestion that this year could feature the final matchup between he and Saban.

Under the new SEC football scheduling with the additions of Oklahoma and Texas, Ole Miss and Alabama are not scheduled to face each other in 2024.

Alabama Injury Report

WR Kendrick Law (illness) – Probable

  • Latest: “K-Law was sick, so he actually didn’t even make the trip,” Saban said following Alabama’s 17-3 victory over USF. “Very sick, but I think he’ll be OK.”
  • We’ve seen Law participating in practice footage that we’ve been provided this week, so it’s likely (probable, even) that you’ll see him back on the field against Ole Miss this weekend. He only played 27 snaps through the first two games, but he’s viewed as an important piece of the wide receiver rotation. His blocking prowess was certainly needed against the Bulls this past weekend.

OL Tyler Booker (back spasms) – Questionable

  • Latest: “Tyler Booker is practicing, and so is Jaheim Oatis,” Saban said on Wednesday. “They haven’t had issues. That doesn’t mean they’re still not day-to-day in terms of coming back and getting over injuries, but they are practicing.”
  • Booker’s absence last Saturday took a bad situation and made it worse. I’d argue that he’s Alabama’s best offensive lineman, even over a veteran standout such as JC Latham. Plus, his presence helps Kadyn Proctor at left tackle. His return won’t fix all of the offensive line’s issues (he was in the lineup for the first two games), but it certainly won’t hurt.

DL Jaheim Oatis (ankle) – Questionable

  • Latest: “Tyler Booker is practicing, and so is Jaheim Oatis,” Saban said on Wednesday. “They haven’t had issues. That doesn’t mean they’re still not day-to-day in terms of coming back and getting over injuries, but they are practicing.”
  • Oatis is probably the most questionable of these three sophomores who missed last weekend’s game. He didn’t dress last week and was even spotted in a walking boot on his left foot. His return would be a boost to Alabama’s defensive front. Ole Miss is a little more balanced in their run game. Through three games, it has a 55-45% split running outside compared to inside. That differs from Texas, who spends about 75% of the time running off-tackle/outside. That means this game could be more important for the interior defenders, so Oatis is needed.

DB DeVonta Smith (foot) – Doubtful

  • Latest: “Smitty’s been out with his foot for a while, and we certainly think that he would be in the mix if he were healthy,” Saban said leading up to the season opener against Middle Tennessee.
  • We don’t know when Smith will be back. The good news is that Alabama’s other two injuries in the secondary — Malachi Moore and Jaylen Key — have both been playing the last couple of weeks. Whenever Smith is able to return, he’s almost certain to serve in some sort of role, whether it be as an extra defensive back in Dime or as a key depth piece.

WR Emmanuel Henderson (hip) – Out

  • Latest: “He has a hip injury,” Saban said a couple of weeks ago. “It’s gonna probably be a few more weeks before he gets back into the swing of things but hard to know exactly when. They’ll do some re-checks on him here in the next week or two. He was having a great fall camp, doing a great job on special teams and made a lot of progress as a receiver, so we’d love to get him back.”

Ole Miss injury report

*Note: Most of this injury report for the Rebels comes from Covers.com

TE Caden Prieskorn (toe) – Questionable

  • Latest: “It’s good that we looked a little (healthier) out there (at practice) today,” Lane Kiffin said on Monday. “Good to get Tre [Harris] out there and [Caden] Prieskorn out there. I’m sure Jaxson [Dart] feels good about that.”
  • Prieskorn was a big-time addition during the offseason. In his final season at Memphis, the 6-foot-5, 255-pound tight end hauled in 48 catches for 602 yards and seven scores. Plus, he’s got good in-line ability as a blocker. Going into the year, many expected him to be the starter, so getting him back would be a big boost for the Rebels. We’re uncertain of his official status though. Keep a look out for No. 86 on Saturday.

WR Tre Harris (knee) – Questionable

  • Latest: “It’s good that we looked a little (healthier) out there (at practice) today,” Lane Kiffin said on Monday. “Good to get Tre [Harris] out there and [Caden] Prieskorn out there. I’m sure Jaxson [Dart] feels good about that.”
  • Harris has missed most of the last two games due to a knee injury. After a monster performance in the season opener against Mercer (six catches, 133 yards, four touchdowns), the transfer from Louisiana Tech brought in two catches for 55 yards and a score against Tulane before the injury. Harris brings size, length and leaping ability to the perimeter. If he’s able to go, expect him to line up against Kool-Aid McKinstry after spending 38 of his 41 snaps so far on the left side.

WR Zakhari Franklin (knee) – Questionable

  • Latest: Franklin has shed his black, non-contact jersey at practice. After initially being ruled out 4-6 weeks due to knee surgery, it’s now been six weeks. We haven’t gotten any official word from Kiffin yet, but it’s possible that he makes his Ole Miss debut this weekend.
  • Franklin was another big addition out of the transfer portal for the Rebels. The former UTSA standout was coming off back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons where he had also hauled in double-digit touchdowns. If he were to play this weekend, that’d give Dart yet another quality option in the passing game alongside Harris, slot Jordan Watkins and Dayton Wade.

WR Jalen Knox (undisclosed) – Questionable

  • Latest: Knox has played 81 snaps in two games so far this season, but that’s only led to one catch (9 yards) on three targets. After bringing in 77 catches for 1,026 and four scores in his first three seasons at Missouri, he’s only saw 110 snaps since arriving in Oxford in 2022. We’re not sure of the reasoning for his absence, or if he’ll play this weekend.

TE Hudson Wolfe (shoulder) – Questionable

  • Latest: Wolfe is listed as the fourth-string tight end on the team’s official depth chart. With Prieskorn out and back-up tight end Michael Trigg limited in the season opener, Wolfe saw 12 snaps before being forced to leave the game with a shoulder injury. He hasn’t played since.

WR Qua Davis (undisclosed) – Questionable