Paul Finebaum compares Lane Kiffin at SEC Media Day to speed dating

The weird dynamic between Paul Finebaum and Lane Kiffin was on full display when the Ole Miss head coach joined the SEC Network analyst on his show at the 2025 SEC Media Days on Monday. The two have an interesting connection to say the least.

Before Kiffin even took the stage that day, Finebaum joined McElroy & Cubelic in the Morning to discuss his odd relationship with Kiffin. He used an interesting analogy to highlight their on-air chemistry. In general, Kiffin gives off a different vibe that your typical big-time college football coach. His use of social media is a prime example.

“I’ve had a lot of interesting conversations with him, and I’m too old to have gone through speed dating, but that’s kind of like, you sit down with him and you don’t know you have,” Finebaum said. “You have five minutes. You have no earthly idea what he’s going to say, how he’s going to say it. That’s his personality. I mean, he’s mercurial, but incredibly smart, and I think he looks at (SEC Media Days) as an inconvenience.”

The two talked about a wide-range of topics, including Kiffin blaming Finebaum for apparently ruining his relationship with former Tennessee head coach Phil Fulmer. Kiffin took over for Fulmer at Tennessee following a nearly two decade long tenure. He revealed the Fulmer doesn’t talk to him anymore because Finebaum reported that Kiffin was the reason Fulmer agreed to step down as head coach.

Kiffin’s main gripe with Finebaum is his claim that the SEC Network host was the reason he lost his job as head coach for the USC Trojans, the job he took after spending one season in Knoxville. It’s a passing joke at this point, and was the cherry on top of their awkward interview during Monday on the opening day of SEC Media Days.

“We stayed true to what we said when we were on the Gulf of America there,” Kiffin said, referring to their previous painfully awkward interview at the SEC spring meetings earlier this offseason. “I made that statement that I was never again going to bring up that you got me fired. And look, I didn’t do it.”

This made Finebaum pop, claiming Kiffin had just broken their promise and mentioned it. Kiffin hilariously denied the notion. It’s just another example of Kiffin being a one of a kind personality in the college football space.