Ole Miss expected to hire Lane Kiffin as coach

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Reports: Ole Miss expected to hire Lane Kiffin as coach

Updated Dec 06, 2019;Posted Dec 06, 2019

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Sports

AP

Florida Atlantic's Lane Kiffin is expected to be the next head football coach at Ole Miss, according to multiple reports. (AP Photo/Jim Rassol)

Ole Miss is set to hire Lane Kiffin as its next head football coach, according to multiple reports.

Kiffin is expected to be announced as the next Rebels head man as early as Saturday. The 44-year-old Kiffin will first coach Florida Atlantic in Saturday’s Conference USA championship game against UAB.

Kiffin — who was also mentioned in connection with the opening at Arkansas — will return to the SEC after three seasons at FAU, where he is 25-13. He was offensive coordinator at Alabama from 2014-16, helping the Crimson Tide to a national championship in 2015.

Kiffin has also been head coach at USC (2010-13), Tennessee (2009) and with the NFL’s Oakland Raiders (2007-08). In eight seasons as a college head coach, he has a record of 60-34.

Ole Miss fired Matt Luke on Sunday, three days after the Rebels lost 21-20 to Mississippi State to end their season at 4-8. Luke posted a record of 15-21 in three seasons as Rebels head coach, going 6-6 as interim coach in 2017 after Hugh Freeze resigned abruptly in mid-July.

Kiffin’s younger brother, Chris, was Ole Miss defensive line coach under Freeze from 2012-16. Chris Kiffin spent the 2017 season as Lane’s defensive coordinator at FAU before joining the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers.