College GameDay questions whether schools can wait for Lane Kiffin in CFP

With head coaching jobs coming available at college football powerhouses such as LSU, Florida and Penn State, the upcoming coaching carousel will be one for the ages.

The golden goose in the coaching carousel has been Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin, who has been linked to job openings at all three of those programs. Kiffin, who has led the Rebels to a 7-1 record this season, is on the verge of making the College Football Playoff for the first time. While navigating that however, he has undoubtedly heard the noise and rumors swirling around the college football landscape.

During the latest edition of the ‘College GameDay Podcast,’ ESPN‘s Pete Thamel questioned whether or not schools can wait for head coaches who are leading teams into the College Football Playoff. Some of these names include Kiffin, Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman, Georgia Tech head coach Brent Key and Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea.

“Here’s what I think becomes the biggest story about Lane Kiffin and making the Playoff,” Thamel said. “I think this philosophical question, which is a great podcast question, because there’s no direct question answer to it that’s going to loom over the next six weeks. Can a College Football Playoff coach, who plays his first game Dec. 19 I believe, take another job? And can a school wait for a College Football Playoff coach? My hunch, having being around a lot of these searches and how just intense they are and the scrutiny, is no.”

Thamel says it’s easier for mid-major guys to depart programs

While stating that it could be extremely difficult for someone like Kiffin to depart his team, Thamel threw out a couple mid-major coaches that could easily pick up and leave for a high-profile job this offseason.

“Could (USF head coach) Alex Golesh, (Tulane head coach) Jon Sumrall, (James Madison head coach) Bob Chesney or one of these mid-major guys walk into his team room after they win their Conference Championship and say ‘hey, I’ve accepted the (fill in the blank) job for triple the salary. You guys are all gonna have an opportunity too. We’re gonna go win the Playoff, but I want you to know now so that it’s not lingering that I’m not leaving.’ Could a Group of Five coach do that and get away with it? Probably,” Thamel wondered.

“Could Lane Kiffin, Brent Key, Clark Lea or a guy who’s at a power conference job wait it out? And can a school wait it out? Can you look your team in the eye and have a guy be like ‘hey coach, everybody’s talking about you for the Florida job’ and you say ‘nope I’m locked in ready to go.’ Can you risk those relationships? Look, Ole Miss can win the National Championship. They’re not favored to do so, but they absolutely could do so. There’s no question they can. So if you win Dec. 19 and win again and again and again, how would LSU be feeling on January 18th if they still didn’t have a coach. The variables on this to me are fascinating and it’s an interesting question that will guide a lot of these searches.”

It will certainly be interesting to see what the head coaching landscape looks after this offseason, which is sure to be a tumultuous one.