Not only does ESPN SEC analyst Cole Cubelic not believe the theory that Lane Kiffin waited until after last weekend’s Iron Bowl to announce his coaching future because he wanted the Alabama job, but Cubelic also doesn’t believe Alabama would ever want its mercurial former offensive coordinator back.
In an appearance this week on the Awful Announcing Podcast, Cubelic cast doubt on the idea that Kiffin honestly waited until Sunday to decide in the first place (when reports as early as Friday suggested he was headed to Baton Rouge). But if there was some small part of Kiffin that thought he might have a chance to replace Kalen DeBoer in Tuscaloosa, Cubelic poured cold water on it.
“My understanding is that that will never happen,” Cubelic said. “But that’s from people inside Alabama’s athletics department that have told me that they don’t think that he’ll ever be a real candidate for that job. And I believe that.”
Todd McShay first posited the theory over the weekend on The Bill Simmons Podcast, when the former ESPN reporter claimed that Kiffin put off announcing his jump to LSU due to the potential chain reaction of an Alabama loss, which may have led to Kalen DeBoer getting fired and that job coming open.
While Cubelic sang Kiffin’s praises as an offensive guru and strategic savant, the SEC Network commentator believes Kiffin’s style would likely clash with how Alabama leadership runs its operation.
“I don’t think Alabama would do it,” Cubelic said.
While many would assume that the Crimson Tide were scared off by Kiffin’s infamous tenure as the team’s offensive coordinator in the mid-2010s, Cubelic said the differences between Kiffin and Alabama go deeper than that.
Kiffin is more hands-off than many other college football coaches and expects his players to hold themselves accountable. For some athletic directors or assistant coaches, that would be a significant change. But Kiffin has found success at Ole Miss with a laissez-faire program and has clearly drawn the interest of LSU leadership despite his unique approach.
Beyond his coaching, Kiffin also values his personal time, whether he is deep-sea fishing or practicing hot yoga. Cubelic said that teams are likely aware of the culture of their surrounding communities when thinking about Kiffin as well.
Altogether, Cubelic doesn’t see Alabama’s values aligning with Kiffin’s.
“I just don’t think that’s for them.”
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.