‘Didn’t believe’ – Ole Miss fans fume as Lane Kiffin watches CFP win to close on $1m bonus after abandoning Rebels

Ole Miss are rolling the 2025 College Football Playoff, and former coach Lane Kiffin is reaping the rewards.

The Rebels are making their debut in the CFP and having come into the tournament ranked No. 6, are now into the semifinals under new coach Pete Golding.

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After a thumping 41-10 victory over No. 11 Tulane in the first round, the Rebels stunned No. 3 Georgia with a 39-34 shootout victory on New Year’s Day.

It means Ole Miss advance to a last four meeting with the Miami Hurricanes at State Farm Stadium on January 8 – but for Rebels fans success comes with a tinge of disappointment.

All their success means that former coach Lane Kiffin is reaping the financial benefits – the further the Rebels go, the more he earns.

Following Kiffin’s acrimonious $91 million departure to LSU at the end of the 2025 college football regular season – it emerged that his contract with the Tigers includes a highly unique clause

As well as earning a $13 million annual salary before incentives, his deal also states that the Tigers would pay him any Playoff bonus that he would have received had he been able to coach Ole Miss through the CFP.

This includes a $150,000 bonus for an appearance, $250,000 for a win and can reach up to $1 million if the Rebels should go on and win the national title.

After pocketing a $250,000 bonus for the win over Tulane, it now stands at $500,000 following victory in the Sugar Bowl, with the 50-year-old is now just two wins away from his former team’s success earning him a cool $1m.

After posting a congratulatory message on social media following the first round win over the Green Wave, Kiffin braved the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans to watch the game from a suite with his family.

He posted again on social media, this time with a picture of his family looking on.

“What a great finish!!! So much fun!! Only two more to go,” he posted to X, formerly Twitter, including a Trinidad flag, magic wand and tagging the Rebels.

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Unsurprisingly it was not greatly received by Ole Miss fans

“You didn’t believe…,” one fan posted in reply to Kiffin’s post.

“Pete has more playoffs wins than you,” another posted in reference to new HC Golding going two from two in the CFP this year.

“GTFO dude. You left your team. That’s not what we teach our kids. Shame on you, Lane. Be better,” a third fan posted.

Kiffin-Ole Miss’ fallout was messy

Kiffin was the most sought-after coach on the market this season, and it seemed that it would take a mega offer to lure him away from Oxford, Mississippi, where he and his father Monte worked together at the Rebels before his passing in 2024 at the age of 84.

Prior to making his decision on whether to stay with Ole Miss or take on a new venture elsewhere, with him also having been linked with the vacant Florida head coaching job, Kiffin admitted that his decision process was an emotional one.

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In a lengthy public statement, he also expressed that he – and his players – had wished to coach the Rebs through the CFP, but was denied that opportunity by Ole Miss Athletic Director Keith Carter.

But a number of Ole Miss players refuted this claim, though, posting to social media their own version of events of Kiffin’s meeting with the players before officially announcing his move to Louisiana.

Even ex-players who worked under Kiffin at Ole Miss chimed in, including defensive tackle Tariqious Tisdale who played on the team for the 2020 and 2021 seasons.

“Don’t get me started on Lane, he’s been a snake since I met him,” Tisdale posted on social media.

“And I got teammates that can vouch especially if you was there in 2020-2021 and played defense.”

While Kiffin has moved on, and will be taking a number of his staff with him, a host of those names were given permission to rejoin the rebels.

Seven LSU staff including offensive coordinator and QB coach Charlie Weis Jr and general manager Thaddeus Rivers are with the Rebels for the duration of their run before moving to Baton Rouge.

Kiffin took over the role following Brian Kelly’s mid-season firing just four years into his 10-year, $95 million contract, and has another clause in his own deal where he can become a top earner if LSU goes on to win a national championship.

Mississippi is scheduled to host LSU at their iconic Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford on September 19 2026, in what is certain to be a memorable reception for Kiffin and Rebels fans.

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