ESPN analyst questions Ole Miss over Lane Kiffin decision as ‘shocking’ Booger McFarland suggestion causes stir

In perhaps the biggest decision in American sports since LeBron James’ decision to go to the Miami Heat, the college football world patiently awaits Lane Kiffin’s announcement of where he will be coaching next season.

The Ole Miss coach has been one of the most sought-after head coaches in recent memory, with him a leading candidate for the vacancies at LSU and Florida, and even linked with the New York Giants job in the NFL.

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Recent reports suggested that LSU had offered $90 million to Kiffin, but as of Friday following Ole Miss’ 38-19 victory over Mississippi State in a game full of drama and punctuated by a rivalry brawl, Kiffin announced that he hadn’t yet made his final decision, though would decide on Saturday.

However, ESPN’s Marty Smith reported on Friday that Ole Miss would match any offer for Kiffin as they desperately try to keep hold of their talisman.

This did not go down with announcer Dave Pasch, though, who fired aim at Ole Miss athletic directory Keith Carter for essentially forcing him into a decision he perhaps wasn’t yet ready to make.

“There has been no ultimatum. It is clearly a decision that is more by the administration that it is by Lane Kiffin in terms of the timing,” Pasch said.

“You wonder if that pushes Lane Kiffin in another direction. Also the chance of bringing staff members – that’s the thing.

Should Kiffin go to Baton Rouge, he may want to bring some of his staff from the Rebels along with him, which means that Ole Miss could enter a potential SEC Championship Game appearance of CFB game without the staff that got them there.

“It’s ridiculous enough to think about the possibility of a head coach not being there to coach his team in the College Football Playoff, but you’ve got staff members — if he does leave — that he’s going to want to take with (him) that may be on the same timeline as him, meaning he wants them to go to work now if he can’t coach the team,” Pasch added.

Should Ole Miss let Kiffin coach in the CFP even if he decides to leave?

With Ole Miss’ regular season now over, there is a possibility that Kiffin – who got involved in a heated exchange with a reporter post game – has coached his last ever Rebels game.

But ABC/ESPN’s Booger McFarland believes that even if Kiffin does ultimately announce that he will be leaving the program, that he should be allowed to finish the season with the team.

“You should always finish what you start,” McFarland said onFriday evening. “This program was started back in the spring. These kids have gone through summer, gone through two-a-days and all that, and now you get to a point where Ole Miss is in the playoff. That’s a fact right now.

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“If Lane decides to leave, he should be allowed to finish what he started. The only way that you don’t allow him to do that is if there’s personal feelings that get involved, because if you’re Ole Miss, then you’re upset that he left.

“But understand it, what message are you sending to the kids that, ‘Hey, I got us here. I helped get us here, and now you’re not going to allow me because of a personal decision, because you don’t like my decision. I can’t finish what I started. I can’t speak for the Ole Miss AD.’

“But here’s what I’ll say. I think it will be a travesty, that if Lane does decide to leave, that he’s not allowed to finish the job. I think the kids would want him to.

“I think if you’re Ole Miss, why would you not? The only reason I can think of Kev is because of personal feeling.”

Fans did not take too kindly to McFarland’s – an LSU alumni – comments though, as one fan posted to social media, “Shocking: LSU alum wants Kiffin to have the freedom to screw over Ole Miss.”

Another posted, “You can’t allow the coach of another team to coach your team it’s that simple. When he says he’s leaving he needs to leave right then so Ole Miss can go ahead and move on.”

“If Lane Kiffin wanted to finish what he started, he would honor his contract with Ole Miss. Easily goes both ways, Booger,” a third wrote.

Kiffin is expected to make his final decision on Saturday, and the college football world, especially those in Oxford Mississipi; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; and Gainesville, Florida, will be keeping a particularly watchful eye on where the 50-year-old will ultimately choose to go for his future.

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