Hugh Freeze Just Can’t Let Ole Miss Go, Lane Kiffin Responds

Now former Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze manages to mess up paying the Rebels a compliment. Current Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin didn’t ignore it, either.

Relax, the Tigers aren’t on the Rebels’ schedule this year so there won’t be any viral moment the week before a game. They really don’t have to be nice to each other.

After Freeze got called out by former Ole Miss quarterback Bo Wallace in social media criticism following Auburn’s loss to Arkansas, it took him awhile to give a response. He couldn’t really act like he didn’t see it, but he tried.

We’re approaching the point that he’s thrown so many QBs under the bus , that maybe no one wants to play for him?? His offense helped me tremendously put numbers up when I blew my shoulder out…. But why is it someone else’s fault every time there’s a loss ?? … but when there’s… https://t.co/ADJoR1BzYJ

— Bo Wallace (@bowallace14) September 22, 2024

“I have an account, but I don’t have it on my phone or anything,” Freeze said on the SEC Teleconference on Wednesday morning. “I really don’t know everything and it’s probably good that I don’t. I did talk with Bo and love him as much as I ever have and wish nothing but best for him and really have.”

“If they feel certain ways because of certain things, certainly they have their right to say those things. But I’ll continue to say he’s probably the most important recruit I ever had at Ole Miss at that juncture of that program there and really proud of what he did while he was there. He’s doing a great job coaching high school ball now and again. I still love him just like I always have.”

That will probably create some additional social media traffic. Somehow, you just find it difficult to see Wallace avoiding the subject that his post put out there in the first place.

Still, though, when the subject of UNLV quarterback Matt Sluka quitting this week because of what he says are certain promises made with NIL, Freeze somehow turned it around to Ole Miss.

Ole Miss Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin reacts during the second half against the Georgia Southern Eagles at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Even when he delivers a compliment, somehow it comes out a little yucky. He complimented the Rebels and Missouri for how they’ve managed their programs to be 4-0 and a big part of that has been the transfer portal.

The Tigers don’t appear to be handling that too well these days. The whole problem apparently is something under the radar that’s under Kiffin’s skin.

“That’s nice of him to compliment the management of our collective,” Kiffin said during his part of the teleconference. [Next] he’ll try and steal Walker Jones like he’s tried [taking] all our coaches.”

Whew. All of that from one teleconference where the subject was supposed to be a recap of last week’s games and looking ahead to this week. If they don’t play in the regular season, it would be a good postseason matchup, wouldn’t it?

Ole Miss, ranked No. 6 in the country, will host Kentucky on Saturday at 11 a.m. in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. The game will be televised on ABC.