WATCH: Golf ball hits Lane Kiffin as Tennessee fans throw trash at bench
Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin was struck on the elbow with a golf ball late in the fourth quarter as Tennessee fans hurled trash at the Rebels bench. The Volunteers had just turned it over on downs while trailing Ole Miss 31-26 with 54 seconds remaining.
Facing fourth-and-24 Volunteers quarterback Hendon Hooker hit Jacob Warren for a long pass that fell less than a yard short of the first down marker. Fans in Knoxville didn’t take kindly to the call and retaliated by throwing trash on the field.
The chaos resulted in a 20-minute delay as Tennessee cheerleaders headed to the locker room. Even after play resumed, there was still trash being thrown on the field.
This is an embarrassing display that likely isn’t going to be forgotten any time soon. It will be interesting to see the response from Tennessee leaders in the coming days.
Once play finally started back, the Volunteers defense forced a three-and-out to get the ball back with 27 seconds left to play. They got the ball down to the Rebels 21-yard line with time for one last play. Joe Milton, who entered late for an injured Hooker, looked around for an open receiver but after not finding anyone took off on a 13-yard scramble to end the game.
In a postgame interview on the broadcast, Lane Kiffin talked about the message he sent to his team after being hit with a golf ball.
“They were just throwing stuff and I said ‘Put your helmet on and let’s play,'” Kiffin said. “It is what it is, there are 100,000 people that came out and they’re passionate. It didn’t go the way they wanted.”
The victory improved Ole Miss to 5-1 overall and 2-1 in SEC play, while the Volunteers dropped to 4-3 and 2-2. The Rebels will look to keep the momentum from this game going next week when they face LSU at 2:30 p.m. ET next Saturday.