Mississippi Rebels Head Coach Pete Golding reacts with Mississippi Rebels safety Anthony Robinson III (20) during warm ups prior to a Week 2 win. Petre Thomas-Imagn Images See more of our coverage in your search results.
Add The New York Post on Google Lane Kiffin’s return to Ole Miss is just the latest chapter of a career defined by drama.
He is the coach who was terminated with cause by the NFL’s Raiders, bolted from Tennessee after one season, was fired by USC at the airport in the middle of the night and was booted by Nick Saban before Alabama’s national title game.
Kiffin has spent much of his adult life wearing black hats, inviting vitriol from all corners of college football by cosplaying as a 14-year-old social-media troll.
His much-anticipated trip back to Ole Miss — where he spent the previous six seasons, then left for a rival school before the playoff, and attempted to steal the core of the best Rebels team in 60 years — is nothing new, coming five years after fans in Knoxville hurled a golf ball, water bottles and other items at him.
He is prepared for what will happen in Oxford on Saturday.
But the same cannot be said for his high-priced roster with sky-high expectations, which will arrive to find an increased police presence, the most hostile 64,000 fans imaginable and a top 10 opponent.
Ole Miss has won 13 straight home games, the third-longest active streak in the nation. They are led by a head coach (Pete Golding) who spent the past three years as Kiffin’s defensive coordinator. And they have perhaps the best quarterback in the nation (Trinidad Chambliss), who Kiffin elevated from Division II but couldn’t convince to join him in Baton Rouge, forcing the coach to settle for Sam Leavitt, the owner of four interceptions in his first two games with the Tigers.
By leaving for a higher ceiling, Kiffin made it easier to get knocked to the ground. Ole Miss (+3) may go decades before playing another game that matters more.
I may be naive, but I have reason to believe the Orange can avoid the three interceptions and 15 penalties that resulted in a three-point loss to Cal despite outgaining the Bears by nearly 200 yards. I also believe this game would be 80 percent more interesting if it were in the Big East.
The Hurricanes might not be truly tested until their Nov. 7 visit to Notre Dame, but Jake Dickert — who led Wake Forest to nine wins in his first season — has gone 9-4 against the spread against ranked opponents as a head coach.
Cody Campbell should’ve consulted with Steve Cohen before cutting so many checks. The Red Raiders roster looks to have taken a significant step back since losing nine players to the NFL, most recently surrendering nearly 500 yards in a near-upset to Oregon State. The Cougars — the only ranked team on Tech’s schedule — have allowed 0.43 yards per carry in their first two games.
The weirdest stat in college football may be that the Buckeyes are 1-3 in their past four games. And they still may be the best bet to win the national title.
In back-to-back SEC title runs, Gunner Stockton has appeared to be all that was stopping Kirby Smart from collecting a third national championship. In his third season as the starter, he may be ready to make the Stetson Bennett leap, completing 87.5 percent of his passes while leading the Bulldogs to 133 points in their first two games.
Final scores can be so misleading. Kentucky led Alabama late in the third quarter before committing four turnovers (two on downs) in its own territory to lose by 28. The Aggies won by 28, erasing the memories of their four-point fourth quarter lead after forcing three turnovers — including two pick-6s — in a span of six plays.
Perception has inflated the spread by at least a few points, ignoring the value of the Seminoles’ bye week, their stunning win against Alabama last year, a quarterback (Ashton Daniels) who nearly led Auburn to an upset of the Tide last season and an opposing quarterback (Keelon Russell) with more interceptions than touchdown passes.
UMass ended a 16-game losing streak in New Jersey. Boston College earned its second win in the past 12 months. Even if it’s hard to be confident in a Trojans defense that just surrendered 30 against Louisiana, it’s even harder to trust a program that is 0-20 as a host to ranked teams since joining the Big Ten, losing by an average of more than 33 points per game.
The Mustangs have owned the Cardinals in recent years, but that was before Lincoln Kienholz arrived. The Ohio State transfer has 639 passing yards, 111 rushing yards, seven total touchdowns and no turnovers in his first two games under Jeff Brohm. SMU’s Kevin Jennings has 17 interceptions in his past 11 road games, contributing to a 3-4 record in his past seven games against Power Four opponents on the road.
The Hoosiers have won seven games by at least 45 points in the past 13 months. The Hilltoppers have allowed nearly 60 points per game this season.
Alex Golesh finished each of the past two seasons looking up in the standings to Jon Sumrall, losing their lone meeting in a 35-point blowout. In each coach’s SEC debut, the more accomplished coach has the better roster once again.
The losses of Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price may have a bigger impact than we thought. Last year, the future first-round NFL picks each averaged more than six yards per carry. This year, the backfield is putting up less than 3.8 yards per attempt.
Rich Rodriguez may be the Greg Schiano of Appalachia, but his offense has intriguing upside. In his first two games in Morgantown, former Oklahoma dual-threat Michael Hawkins Jr. has showcased shades of Pat White — now, the Mountaineers assistant quarterbacks coach — averaging nearly 100 yards rushing while completing 76.2 percent of his passes.
This is an obvious letdown spot for the Longhorns — days removed from an all-time comeback against Ohio State and days ahead of a trip to Tennessee — against one of the nation’s best and most experienced Group of Six teams, which threw a scare into Texas A&M last season.
Best bets: Florida, Michigan State, UTSA.
2014-25 Record: 1,516-1,450-32 (.511).
Howie Kussoy has long been the New York Post’s main handicapper in college basketball (since 2011) and college football (since 2013).
