LSU football might not have the official ink yet, but the program is acting like Lane Kiffin is its next head coach. Multiple sources told ESPN the expectation is that the LSU Tigers will hire Ole Miss Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin on Sunday, with one source saying it would be “a shock” if he does not sign.
The contract, if finalized, would be for seven years at around $12 million annually, a deal that would immediately drop Kiffin into the top tier of college football salaries.
The timing explains the urgency. LSU wrapped a 7-5 season with a 17-13 loss at the Oklahoma Sooners, mustering only 198 total yards and watching a 13-10 fourth-quarter lead vanish on a 58-yard touchdown bomb from John Mateer to Isaiah Sategna III. Quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr. threw for 96 yards with one touchdown and one interception as the Tigers fell to 3-5 in SEC play.
Lane Kiffin, meanwhile, sits on the other end of the SEC spectrum. He guided the Ole Miss Rebels to an 11-1 regular season and a 38-19 Egg Bowl win over the Mississippi State Bulldogs. That is the résumé LSU is paying for, explosive offense, quarterback development, and proof that Kiffin can win big in the country’s toughest league.
There are a lot of complications still involved with Kiffin still undecided whether he wants to finish the season with Ole Miss or not, as well as rumors that he is threatening to poach his staff should he accept the LSU job. There is a small window for drama before signatures hit paper, especially with Ole Miss pushing to keep its guy. But with money, momentum, and mutual interest all lined up, Sunday shapes up as the day the Tigers make the Lane Kiffin era official.
