Chris Doering encourages Ole Miss to let Lane Kiffin coach through College Football Playoff if he takes Florida job

No. 7 Ole Miss improved to 10-1 on the season Saturday night following its 34-24 win over Florida. The program’s main storyline should be that the Rebels are on the brink of making the College Football Playoff for the first time in program history, but that is not the case.

Instead, Lane Kiffin‘s upcoming decision to either stay in Oxford or leave for the Florida or LSU head coaching job is grabbing all the headlines. Kiffin’s family even reportedly flew into Baton Rouge and toured the city over the weekend. His family also traveled to Gainesville on Sunday, per On3’s Pete Nakos, Brett McMurphy and Chris Low.

On3’s Brett McMurphy reported on Monday that Ole Miss would have to decide it it would allow Kiffin to coach in the playoffs if he doesn’t make his stay-or-go deadline, which is reportedly the Nov. 28 Egg Bowl matchup against Mississippi State. Former First Team All-SEC wide receiver and SEC Network analyst Chris Doering made his thoughts known on the situation Monday afternoon.

Even if Kiffin decides he’s leaving why would OM not want him to take them the rest of the way? You’re on the brink of doing something historic. Go win a NC and then figure the rest out. The best way to do that is with LK on the sideline coaching his team. https://t.co/Gvflv0bb79

— Chris Doering (@ChrisDoering) November 17, 2025

“Even if (Lane) Kiffin decides he’s leaving why would [Ole Miss] not want him to take them the rest of the way? You’re on the brink of doing something historic,” Doering wrote. “Go win a [National Championship] and then figure the rest out. The best way to do that is with [Lane Kiffin] on the sideline coaching his team.”

Following Saturday night’s win over the Gators, Kiffin had an opportunity to slam the door shut on rumors of his departure. However, he didn’t quite do that.

“I love what we’re doing here,” Kiffin said. “Today was awesome. To even talk about it right now would be so disrespectful to our players and what they did today. We’ve got a lot of things going on right now and we’re doing really well.”

Kiffin rumors are overshadowing Ole Miss’ 10-1 start to season

Kiffin has been with the Ole Miss program since 2020, leading the Rebels to a 54-19 record over that span. They notched their fourth 10-win season under Kiffin with their win Saturday night and look well on their way to the College Football Playoff. However, these rumors are dimming down the excitement a bit in Oxford.

“We’re not here to discuss rumors, but you could not avoid it, and everybody seems to know something. He is going to have a difficult time these next couple of weeks dealing with it,” ESPN‘s Paul Finebaum said on Sunday. “Because everything seems to be pointing toward Florida. It appears the governor did a good job of taking Lane Kiffin out of the LSU situation. Now, how does he deal with it?”

The rumors will just continue to grow louder, as Ole Miss has the upcoming weekend off before its rivalry clash with Mississippi State. Buckle up, because the noise around Lane Kiffin will continue to grow as each day passes without a decision.