Lane Kiffin’s first trip back to Oxford as LSU’s coach is bringing a little more than football buzz to town. It’s a top-10 matchup, a high-profile homecoming, and, for local officials, a weekend that calls for extra planning.
At Monday’s press conference, Kiffin acknowledged the concerns surrounding his return to Ole Miss.
“I guess there is real safety issues and stuff - and so there are people that have a plan for that,” Kiffin said. “It is what it is.”
Oxford police say they do, in fact, have a plan. Breck Jones, the Public Information Officer for the Oxford Police Department, said the department is adding security ahead of Saturday’s game between No.
8 Ole Miss and No. 7 LSU at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.
“That’s obviously a portion of this,” Jones told The Sporting News. “There is a lot of anticipation with them coming back, but Ole Miss-LSU is a big rivalry game.”
One of the biggest changes will be visible downtown. Jones said there will be extra security in The Square on Saturday, including 19 mounted officers.
“We’re having additional mounted patrol units join our patrol area in the downtown square area,” Jones told SN.
The Oxford Police Department is not responsible for security inside the stadium, but the coordination around the game has expanded well beyond one agency. Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter said the university has worked closely with the Oxford Police Department, the University of Mississippi Police Department and the Lafayette County Sheriff’s Department to keep the game safe.
“These big gatherings are susceptible to security issues, and so, we want to make sure that we’re doing everything we can to protect the people who are coming to the game, our team, our coaches, and our staff,” Carter said.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry had joked that Ole Miss might need the National Guard, but Carter shut that idea down on Super Talk Mississippi Media this week. The National Guard will not be in Oxford.
Carter also said there is no official indication that President Donald Trump will attend.
“We have not heard anything from President Trump’s camp, officially,” Carter said. “I’ve kind of heard the rumors as well.
There are some Ole Miss folks that are close to the president, and they’ve mentioned that could potentially happen. Obviously, that would be a big undertaking from the standpoint of logistics.”
Fans heading into town should expect a slower crawl than usual. Carter urged people to arrive early and avoid the pregame rush.
“I would encourage everybody that’s coming into town to be a little bit more patient than normal,” Carter said. “Try to get to the game early and avoid some of the rush right before kickoff,” he said.
Jones said that message fits the reality of what Oxford expects Saturday to look like. The downtown area is going to be packed, and that’s no surprise given the opponent and the circumstances.
“It’s always some of our biggest crowds every time they come to town,” Jones said. “We’re anticipating a massive crowd - maybe our biggest - but we know that LSU weekend is always going to be a busy weekend here in Oxford.”
State officials are treating it the same way. According to USA Today, Mississippi Department of Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell called the weekend an “all hands on deck” situation and said the number of state police officers on and around campus will be tripled compared with a normal game.
“I’ve got confidence in the fans of Ole Miss and LSU ultimately,” Tindell said via USA Today. “As competitive as it is and everybody wants their team to win, to handle themselves appropriately and act right.
Oxford police have had plenty of time to get ready. When the 7:30 p.m.
ET kickoff was announced on May 12, the department reacted with a tweet that simply said “Yay!” alongside a GIF from “The Office.”
The department now says the focus is on keeping things calm and responding quickly if they don’t stay that way.
“We can’t control those kinds of situations,” Jones said. “It’s up to us to mitigate them when it does occur. We feel like we’re prepared and our staff is prepared and we do a great job of maintaining safety for everyone that enters our community.
“I mean, there is always every fan base that has fans that take it too far and sometimes that happens, but for the most part our fans can get along with just about anybody in Oxford,” Jones said.
The buildup won’t stop at the stadium gates, either. The Grove, Ole Miss’ signature tailgating spot, is expected to be especially busy. CBS college football writer John Talty, who wrote the book “Lane Being Lane,” said he expects an “all-time Grove experience,” though even he isn’t sure exactly what that will look like.
“Usually they are that kind of place where it’s, ‘Have a bite of chicken; come in and have a drink’ and all that,” Talty said. “I don’t know if that will be the case for LSU fans. We’ll see.”
ESPN’s “College GameDay” will also be in town, adding another layer to what is already shaping up as a full-day operation for first responders.
Jones said the department is ready for that, too.
“We want everyone to come here and have a good time and have a safe time,” he said. “If anybody sees anything suspicious, reach out to us.”
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