Lane Kiffin Heads to LSU: What It Means for Ole Miss and the College Football Playoff
Lane Kiffin is on the move-again. This time, he's leaving Oxford for Baton Rouge, taking over at LSU in a stunning coaching carousel twist that’s bound to shake up the SEC. But with Ole Miss sitting at 11-1 and firmly in the College Football Playoff picture, the timing of Kiffin’s departure raises a massive question: what happens now?
Let’s unpack the fallout, what it means for the Rebels, and how the CFP committee might handle a top-10 team suddenly without its head coach.
Kiffin’s Exit: A Curveball in the CFP Race
Ole Miss fans woke up to the kind of news that makes your coffee go cold-Lane Kiffin is out, taking the LSU job just as the Rebels are knocking on the door of the College Football Playoff. And this isn’t a case of a Group of Five coach leveling up. Kiffin is jumping ship to a direct SEC rival, one Ole Miss actually beat this season.
That’s not just a tough pill to swallow-it’s a full-on gut punch.
The Rebels have built a legitimate contender under Kiffin. This 11-1 campaign marks the fourth time in five seasons they’ve hit double-digit wins.
This isn’t a flash-in-the-pan run. It’s the product of a foundation Kiffin helped lay brick by brick.
So for him to leave now, with the Rebels still in the hunt for a national title, adds a complicated twist to an already chaotic playoff picture.
Should Kiffin Coach the CFP?
That’s the million-dollar question-and it’s far from simple.
On one hand, there's a strong argument for Kiffin to finish what he started. Coaching through the playoff would give his players the continuity they’ve earned after a stellar season.
But on the other hand, the early signing period opens December 3, and LSU isn’t waiting around. If Kiffin delays his transition, it could hurt his recruiting efforts in Baton Rouge-and that’s a risk he clearly isn’t willing to take.
If he does stay to coach the Rebels through the postseason, Ole Miss AD Keith Carter is going to take some heat for allowing a lame-duck coach to lead the most important games in program history. If he doesn’t, the Rebels are left navigating the CFP without the architect of their rise.
There’s no perfect answer here-just a lot of tough choices.
Could Kiffin’s Departure Hurt Ole Miss in the Rankings?
It already might have.
Last week, the CFP committee flipped Oregon and Ole Miss in the No. 6 and No. 7 spots. Committee chair Hunter Yuracheck tried to brush it off with a "6-7" joke, insisting it was about Oregon’s strength of schedule and dominance on both sides of the ball-not anything to do with Ole Miss or Kiffin.
But with Kiffin officially out, that conversation is going to resurface. The committee has to decide how much a coach’s presence-or absence-should factor into seeding. And there’s precedent here.
Remember Florida State in 2023? The Seminoles went undefeated but lost quarterback Jordan Travis to injury late in the year.
Despite winning the ACC title and finishing 13-0, they were left out of the final four, passed over for a one-loss Alabama team. The rationale?
FSU wasn’t the same team without its star.
So does that logic apply to a head coach like Kiffin?
Will Ole Miss Be Left Out of the CFP?
No-and they shouldn’t be.
The Rebels are 11-1, with their only loss coming to Georgia in a 43-35 shootout. Their resume includes a 34-26 win over a top-15 Oklahoma squad.
Sure, it's not stacked with ranked wins, but this team has done enough. They’ve earned their place in the 12-team playoff field.
The real question is seeding.
Eight Power Four teams entered this weekend with either an undefeated record or just one loss. No.
11 BYU is the only one on the outside looking in. With Texas A&M falling to Texas, Ole Miss could jump the Aggies in the pecking order.
But Alabama, sitting at No. 10, could leapfrog the Rebels with a win in the Iron Bowl and a trip to the SEC Championship Game.
So yes, Kiffin’s departure might cost Ole Miss a few spots in the rankings. But it won’t-and shouldn’t-knock them out of the playoff entirely.
Can Ole Miss Still Make Noise in the Playoff?
Absolutely-but it won’t be easy.
Losing a head coach this late in the season is like losing your offensive coordinator, play-caller, and team psychologist all at once. Kiffin’s fingerprints are all over this team’s identity. From the tempo to the play design to the swagger, this is his team.
But college football isn’t the NFL, where interim coaches making playoff runs is just part of the drama. In this sport, coaching changes in December can derail even the best-laid plans. That said, if the Rebels can rally around their core, stay focused, and get solid leadership from whoever steps in on an interim basis, they’ve still got a shot to make a run.
The roster is good enough. The resume is strong enough. The question is whether they can hold it all together without the man who built it.
Final Thoughts
Lane Kiffin’s move to LSU is a bombshell, no doubt. But it doesn’t erase what Ole Miss has accomplished this season. The Rebels are still a one-loss SEC team with a real shot to make noise in the expanded College Football Playoff.
Yes, the timing is messy. Yes, the optics are rough. But the team on the field deserves to be judged on its body of work-not the career choices of its now-former head coach.
The playoff committee has a tough job, but this much is clear: Ole Miss belongs in the postseason. Whether they’ll be at full strength-mentally, emotionally, and strategically-is another story. But as we’ve seen time and again, college football doesn’t always follow the script.
And with or without Kiffin, the Rebels still have a chance to write one heck of a final chapter.