Jason OwensStaff writerTue, December 2, 2025 at 1:13 AM UTC·6 min readIt's officially official.
Following a chaotic 72 hours that started with a Mississippi win in the Egg Bowl and culminated with a seismic college coaching shift in the heart of the SEC, Lane Kiffin is the head coach of LSU football. Kiffin spoke for the first time on Monday in his official capacity as LSU's coach at his introductory news conference.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementDonning a purple striped tie and surrounded by eager LSU supporters, Kiffin explained what motivated him to leave Mississippi for LSU with his former team on the verge of competing for a national championship. He also talked about the chaotic weekend scene from Oxford to Baton Rouge that he claims included angry Mississippi fans trying to run him off the road.
He also claims that he took the LSU job without knowing how much he was getting paid — that the decision was ultimately not about the money.
LSU AD: Kiffin has 'a big enough personality' for the job
LSU athletic director Verge Ausberry introduced Kiffin on Monday, describing him as having a "big enough personality to operate in a state of big personalities.”
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“The first name over everyone’s lips was Lane Kiffin," Ausberry said of LSU's coaching search.
Kiffin then took the podium and offered the short answer for why he chose to take the LSU job.
"I can sum it up by saying this," Kiffin said. "This place is different. And that’s why we’re here."
The first question Kiffin faced was about why he chose to leave an 11-1 Mississippi program that he'd built into a national contender while it's on the verge of the College Football Playoff.
Kiffin blames Ole Miss AD for not seeing 2025 season through
Kiffin said that he made the decision Saturday night and that he pressed Mississippi athletic director Keith Carter about continuing to coach the program through the rest of the season, even though he'd just taken a job at a rival program.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementDespite that obvious conflict of interest, Kiffin shifted the blame of the chaos left behind in Oxford on Carter's decision to not allow him to keep coaching.
"That was excruciating and difficult," Kiffin said of leaving Mississippi at this moment. "We tried every possible thing for a long time the other night. ... We presented a plan how that could be done and give the players their best chance to win in the playoffs. And at the end of the day that's their decision, and I respect that.
"It made sense to everybody outside why the best thing was to keep us all together for the playoffs. And it made sense to all the national media why it made sense to do that. And like he said, he has to live there. And I totally respect that, and I respect their decision."
Kiffin said that after he informed Carter of his decision Mississippi did not allow him to address his players on his way out.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementKiffin: Pete Carroll, Nick Saban supported decision
Kiffin said that he consulted his coaching mentors Pete Carroll and Nick Saban among others as he was torn over what decision to make. He said that he got unanimous support outside of Mississippi to take the LSU job.
"I felt like everybody that I talked to outside of the state that I was in all basically said the same thing. They all said that 'you're going to regret it if you don't take this shot and you don't go to LSU.'"
He also said that LSU was ultimately the only job that he would have left Mississippi to take.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"A lot of opportunity to leave including this conference’s very prominent programs and never did," Kiffin said. "It came down to, at the end of the day, the only one we were leaving for is once we felt this alignment and passion at LSU."
Kiffin claims he didn't know how much his LSU contract is worth
As for the money? Kiffin said it played no factor in his decision. He claims that he told his agent Jimmy Sexton to not even fill him in on financial negotiations.
“I said through the process I’m never gonna make a decision on money," Kiffin said. "I’m telling you now, I don’t know what my contract is here. That’s not very financially responsible. I’m sure it’s really good.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"I don’t know what it is. Nor do I know at the other places what the numbers were. I said in the beginning — I told Jimmy Sexton — don’t tell me the numbers. I want to make a decision that has nothing to do with money for me."
Kiffin claimed even while standing on the podium that he still doesn't know what his contract pays him. It's $13 million annually, making him college football's second-highest paid coach behind Georgia's Kirby Smart.
He did say that Sexton told him Monday that all of the contract offers he received were similar in compensation. But it was the NIL money that LSU offered to build a program that swayed him.
"He said, 'basically all four were extremely similar contracts for me," Kiffin continued. "But in the process of figuring out NIL packages, those were not similar. Those were not the same. And that’s a big part of it."
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementKiffin: Mississippi fans tried to run him off the road
As for his exit from Oxford? Video from Sunday shows fans showing up at the airport screaming at him and flipping the bird after his decision to leave was made public. Kiffin says that it went further than that.
Kiffin repeatedly claimed on Monday that fans in Mississippi tried to run him off the road as the drove with his son, Knox Sunday night.
"It’s the passion of the SEC," Kiffin said. "So I understand that. So I don’t get emotional with it yesterday like so many people get emotional. They change like that. We spent six years there, and that airport scene, Knox and I driving and people trying to run us off the road, man. And the things they said to us.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"And we got here, had been here for six minutes and how ‘we love you coach, you’re the best ever.” We’re like ‘we’ve only been here for six minutes, we haven’t done anything yet.’ But that’s the SEC. I’ve been around long enough to know that. That’s the passion of the SEC. I’m not upset at those reactions by fans.”
Kiffin said that he understood the anger of Mississippi fans because of the success the program had experienced during his tenure.
“I think people get really upset when you leave somewhere because they feel hurt because you’re doing a really good job," Kiffin said. "They ain’t going to the airport and driving from all over to say those things and yell those things and try to run you off the road if you were doing bad.”
Kiffin will have a chance to face his former fans soon enough. LSU will travel to face Mississippi next season.
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