Lane Kiffin takes shot at South Carolina ahead of potential controversy in CFP Rankings

Lane Kiffin has made himself clear in where he feels that Ole Miss stands, especially in comparison to other at-larges from the SEC, as far as the College Football Playoff.

Kiffin spoke about the possibility of South Carolina passing Ole Miss in the next edition of the CFP Rankings this week while on a media call on Sunday. With all due respect to the Gamecocks, he wondered why the games would even matter at that point considering the Rebels went to Columbia and won by three scores.

“I have great respect for South Carolina,” Kiffin said per Brad Logan of ‘Inside The Rebels’. “South Carolina jumping us? Why do we even play the games?”

“We have the same record in the same conference. We went to their place and ran them out of their place,” noted Kiffin. “We would still be playing the game and they still might not have scored a touchdown.”

Kiffin made a similar point earlier today on social media with a post on Twitter. He had another take as well with a retweet regarding how they’d stand in a case against Alabama.

Ole Miss currently ranks as one of the first teams out as an at-large on the bubble for the CFP. They were rated at No. 14 by the committee going into the final weekend of the regular season. A win in the Egg Bowl since then now has them finished at 9-3 overall. Their best wins are an 18-point victory over Georgia and that 24-point victory on the road over South Carolina. However, three losses, albeit all by one score – one on the road in overtime against LSU, one on the road against Florida, and then, specially, one at home to Kentucky – has them on the outside looking in.

Still, this point is more about Ole Miss vs. South Carolina. The Gamecocks have been one of the fastest-rising teams to end this season as they’re now at No. 15. They have done that with a record of 9-3 after having won each of their final six. That includes ranked wins over Texas A&M, Missouri, and at Clemson. Even so, the most lopsided loss of their trio this fall came on their home field to the Rebels.

The committee and the sport, even if none of them get in in the end, are going to talk circles around the at-larges that are just out in the SEC. Regardless, Kiffin can’t see the point of the season if South Carolina were to be positioned past Ole Miss this week with just a few days before the field is selected.