‘This is where we want to be’: Kiffin again thanks Ole Miss, as his Rebels arrive for Peach Bowl
Lane Kiffin, on Tuesday, was apparently still in the Christmas spirit.
Or, at the very least, the sentimental spirit.
Kiffin and the Rebels will cap his fourth full season as Ole Miss head coach in the Peach Bowl, their second New Year’s Six under his watch. Ole Miss takes on Penn State for the first time in history on December 30 at 11 a.m. CT. A Rebel win would secure the program’s first-ever 11-win campaign.
Kiffin, though, spent much of the opening few minutes of his Peach Bowl arrival press conference not previewing James Franklin’s 10-win Nittany Lions. Instead, he took some time, again, to discuss what Ole Miss has meant to him.
“I’ve very grateful to be hired here in the first place four seasons ago,” Kiffin said. “And to get an extension, which didn’t change any financial part of the situation, just added length and commitment that this is where we want to be and commitment from the university. Just really pleased to be a part of that and our staff for our leadership here and our players. They’ve done amazing to win 10 games two of the last three seasons.
“Think of where it was when we got here to where it is now and what’s been going on in recruiting, that’ll lead into next year. It’s really amazing just to be a part of. Excited to watch these guys play one more game.”
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Kiffin’s Rebels have been the talk of college football so far this off-season.
They signed the No. 19 overall high-school class in the country. The headliner was Kamarion Franklin, the top-ranked recruit in Mississippi. He’s an early enrollee who made the trip to Atlanta with the Rebels.
Their mad dash through the NCAA Transfer Portal has netted the portal’s top-ranked player (Walter Nolen, DT, Texas A&M), top-two EDGE rushers (Tyler Baron, Tennessee, and Princely Umanmielen, Florida), top wide receiver (Juice Wells, South Carolina), top linebacker (Chris ‘Pooh’ Paul, Arkansas) and a host of others.
Ole Miss is also retaining most all of its star players from this season for a title run in 2024, when the College Football Playoff expands to 12 teams. Among them, wide receives Tre Harris and Jordan Watkins, tight end Caden Prieskorn, center Caleb Warren and, eventually, quarterback Jaxson Dart.
But, first, the Peach Bowl. Ole Miss has only appeared in the game twice all-time. The other came in 2014.
“We’re excited to be here and be a part of this huge matchup and big-time bowl game and to be able to play Penn State,” Kiffin said. “Coach Franklin, they’ve done such a great job, not just this year, but a lot of years in a row here of a great run. So, this is a really big challenge for us.
“We’re excited to be in Atlanta with a long of events coming up and a lot of work still to do. This is Tuesday of a work week, so we have practice coming up here in a little bit in the stadium, and our first practice here. A lot of work still to be done.”
