Commentary: Forward, Rebels

By Sarah Sign

IMC Student

Lane Kiffin is turning Ole Miss football around. I fully believe that he will lead this team to a national championship. 

When Kiffin stepped off the Ole Miss jet in the dead of night after being announced the new head football coach, something special emerged with him: Hope. 

After being stripped of dignity on several occasions (sometimes deservedly so – I’m looking at you, Colonel Reb), the Ole Miss Rebels received a gift of hope. It was not a starting quarterback or five-star running back there that night who felt the magic, but the locals of a town defined by football. The countless fans lined up in the darkness had the glimmer of hope in their eyes for the first time in a long time. 

Kiffin brought this great hope because he has this same great hope in his heart. He loves the town as much as the locals. 

“It didn’t exactly sound great coming from living in Boca on the water to Mississippi, but it was the right choice for me,” Kiffin said. “I love it here. It’s perfect for me.” 

I fully believe that a championship coach must first love the town as well as the team. Kiffin checks both boxes. He also has the football knowledge to get us to a championship. 

Football and family go hand in hand, and his family has been all about football. Since he was a young child, he grew up going to games with his father, famous NFL coach Monte Kiffin.

“I was the ball boy on the sidelines at a lot of games. I also remember riding a horse at USC, and I looked just like my son, Knox,” said Lane Kiffin. 

Knox has carried on the family tradition and can usually be seen on the sidelines of games asking players football questions, joining the team in celebrations, and occasionally reprimanding receivers for not catching the ball. He is the quarterback for his middle school football team and although he could follow in his father’s footsteps, when when asked about the possibility the younger Kiffin said, “Nah. I want to be a history teacher.”

Whatever he decides, the middle schooler certainly inherited his father’s inquisitive mind. 

Family is a big part of Kiffin’s love for Oxford. 

“A big reason I love it here is because of my daughter, Landry, coming here to move in with me and attend Ole Miss,” he said. 

Kiffin fell for Oxford’s charm and with the help of his daughter, he gives back to the community. Through Landry’s fundraiser known as “Joy from Juice,” the young patients at Le Bonheur Children’s have received stuffed animals resembling the Kiffin family dog, named Juice. Together, father and daughter surpassed their original fundraising goal of $5,000. 

Kiffin has been a visionary and innovative force at Ole Miss, both in how his players perform and how they look on the field. He’s implemented numerous uniform combinations during his tenure at Ole Miss and collaborated with Realtree for the team’s helmets.

But Kiffin emphasizes that the ultimate goal is posting winning records year after year.

“I want to make this team consistently great,” he said.