Appearing on 'The Pat McAfee how,' Lane Kiffin denied Ole Miss gave him an ultimatum regarding his future at the school. Screen grab: ‘The Pat McAfee Show’
By Ben Axelrod on

As rumors continue to connect Lane Kiffin to job vacancies at LSU and Florida, a report emerged claiming that Ole Miss has given its star head coach an ultimatum to reaffirm his commitment to the Rebels program.

Appearing on The Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday, Kiffin denied that to be the case, calling the report from The Athletic’s Stewart Mandel “absolutely not true.”

“There’s been no ultimatum, anything like that at all,” the 50-year-old head coach said. “And so I don’t know where that came from, like a lot of stuff that comes out there. Like I said, we’re having a blast. I love it here.”

While McAfee didn’t directly ask Kiffin where he’ll be coaching in 2025, the former Alabama offensive coordinator made it clear he’s focusing on the present.

“It just couldn’t be better. Like I said, you pray for things. Our fans prayed for this type of thing and now we’re in the middle of it, so enjoy it,” he said. “You’re 10-1, you’re getting ready, you’ve got a bye week, you get to watch half the country lose — and there’s no way we can lose Saturday. And then you play the Egg Bowl and go dominate that and keep that Egg Bowl trophy home where it’s been for a long time.”

In addition to the alleged ultimatum, Mandel also confirmed previous reports that members of Kiffin’s family visited Baton Rouge and Gainesville earlier this week (Lane wasn’t on either trip). As for what would happen if the head coach doesn’t reaffirm his commitment to the Rebels by the school’s deadline of the Egg Bowl on Nov. 28, that’s unclear, but it’s understandable why Ole Miss would want an answer sooner than later.

For now, everything appears to be in a holding pattern publicly, although there’s surely plenty of parts moving behind the scenes. But regardless of how all of this plays out, there’s certainly no shortage of intrigue in two SEC rivals pursuing one of the sport’s most famous coaches, with his own SEC team on the verge of an appearance in the College Football Playoff.

About Ben Axelrod

Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.

View all posts by Ben Axelrod