Ask any Ole Miss Rebels fan and most will tell you Lane Kiffin could not get out of town fast enough.
Whoever was packing the football coach’s things on the school’s Oxford campus seemed to agree, as it appears his clothes were left on the side of the road.
In a photo that has since gone viral on X, Ole Miss beat reporter Ben Garrett shared a photo of a clothes rack that appeared to include mostly dress shirts on a street corner.
“Ole Miss even put Kiffin’s clothes in the street,” he captioned the pic, shared on Sunday, November 30.
Kiffin, 50, accepted the head coaching job at LSU over the weekend, leaving the Rebels as they prepare for a likely run in the College Football Playoff.
While it’s fairly common in college football for a coach to leave his team before the postseason, it’s virtually unheard of when the team is still in the running for the national championship. Kiffin’s decision to leave before the CFP has rubbed fans and media alike the wrong way.
“I was hoping to complete a historic six season run with this year’s team by leading Ole Miss through the playoffs, capitalizing on the team’s incredible success and their commitment to finishing strong, and investing everything into a playoff run with guardrails in place to protect the program in any areas of concern,” Kiffin said in a statement released Sunday.
“Unfortunately, that means Friday’s Egg Bowl was my last game coaching for the Rebels,” he continued, referring to the team’s win over in-state rival Mississippi State. “While I’m looking forward to a new start with a unique opportunity at LSU, I will forever cherish the incredible six years I spent at Ole Miss and will be rooting hard for the team to complete their mission and bring a championship to Oxford.”
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Kiffin added that, despite taking the job in Baton Rouge, he hoped to continue coaching Ole Miss through the postseason. University athletic director Keith Carter denied his request to do so, according to the veteran head coach.
“Coach Kiffin and I met yesterday, and he informed us that he is accepting the head coaching position at another school,” said Carter, 49, in a statement released Sunday. “For our program to begin preparing for its future – both the short and long term, he will be stepping away from the team immediately.”
Kiffin left Mississippi on Sunday via airplane, with Rebels fans booing and yelling expletives at him as he boarded, according to video shared via social media. He spoke with ESPN as he left town, calling it a “very challenging and difficult day.”
“We went through a lot last night with Keith Carter trying to figure out a way to make this playoff run work and be able to coach the team, and at the end of the day that’s his decision,” he said. “I totally respect that and I understand that decision. I just totally wish the team the best of luck, I wish I was coaching, but I understand that it was a very challenging position for him to be in.”
Kiffin continued, “Just hope they play really well, and go win the national championship.”
Former defensive coordinator Pete Golding will coach Mississippi through the playoff and beyond, as Carter named him permanent head coach on Sunday.
