Lane Kiffin makes call on attending Ole Miss’ CFP game vs. Georgia

Lane Kiffin won’t watch his former Ole Miss players in the Sugar Bowl on Thursday after all.

Kiffin, who bolted from the Rebels to LSU in November to become the Tigers’ new head coach and relinquish the chance to coach in the College Football Playoff (CFP) this year, was reportedly considering attending the game alongside Louisiana governor Jeff Landry, but he’ll actually be watching the LSU women’s basketball team play Kentucky instead, according to WAFB.

In a post on X, Kiffin seemingly confirmed the news by responding to the report with a tiger emoji and tagging LSU’s account, and he also posted a screenshot of all the “College GameDay” analysts picking Georgia to win the Sugar Bowl over his former team.

Security plans were reportedly being made for Kiffin’s arrival at Caesars Superdome, according to a Yahoo Sports report Wednesday, and it would’ve marked the latest strange twist after his exit.

Kiffin, who took over at LSU after Brian Kelly’s firing, appeared on the ESPN broadcast during LSU’s bowl game last Saturday too.

But attending the Sugar Bowl would’ve been different. 

Kiffin helped the Rebels collect an 11-1 record during the regular season, orchestrating one of the best runs in program history that resulted in a CFP berth.

But everything got messy after he bolted for a seven-year deal that’ll pay him $13 million per season, with Kiffin wanting to coach the Rebels through the end of their postseason and Ole Miss denying that request.

“I think both coach and his representation knew several weeks ago that coaching in the playoffs was not going to be an option, if he was not the Ole Miss head coach,” Ole Miss vice chancellor for collegiate athletics Keith Carter said on “SuperTalk Mississippi” in early December.

Pete Golding took over as head coach and won his first game as the Rebels defeated Tulane in the opening round, and offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr., who followed Kiffin to LSU, was allowed to return to coach the CFP games.

Ole Miss and Georgia battled in the third quarterfinal game Thursday, with the winner advancing to face Miami — who upset second-seeded Ohio State, 24-14, on Wednesday — in the semifinals.