Lane Kiffin offers thoughts on Urban Meyer situation, firing

Lane Kiffin is unique in many ways. One of the many reasons why is the journey that led him to Ole Miss. Before he was the beloved coach of the Rebels, the story of Kiffin’s coaching career featured an infamous stint in the NFL with the Oakland Raiders.

Moreover, Kiffin has an interesting perspective on coaches who make the jump. Nowadays, perhaps no coach that did it has been in the news more than Urban Meyer. Like Kiffin, the former Ohio State coach was fired from his job coaching professionals.

Earlier this week while joining The Rich Eisen Show, Kiffin gave his thoughts on the Meyer situation.

“I wouldn’t be educated enough on what happened there,” started Kiffin. “Not following it with our stuff going on and everything, so I got no idea what happened there. That transition has worked a few times, but a lot of times it doesn’t work.

“I’m not saying it happened in that one. But you know, you’re dealing with college players versus professional athletes that are making a lot of money. It’s a different world.”

NFL teams are usually weary of coaches who make the move from college to the league. Now, Meyer will be an example used for years to come.

At the least, Lane Kiffin has bragging rights over Urban Meyer when it comes to coaching in the NFL — his five wins dwarf Meyer’s two.

More on Lane Kiffin, NFL

If Lane Kiffin keeps Ole Miss on the upswing, an NFL team will come calling for his services. Due to Kiffin’s competitive nature, one has to wonder whether the former Raiders head coach would welcome the challenge to change the narrative around his NFL career.

After working as an assistant with the USC Trojans for years, Kiffin was made the youngest head coach in Oakland Raiders history when he was hired by owner Al Davis. At 31 years-old, Kiffin was handed the keys to one of the league’s historic franchise.

Unfortunately, Kiffin was saddled with an all-time NFL bust — former LSU quarterback Jamarcus Russell. The Ole Miss coach was never able to overcome the selection, and his Raiders became bottom-dwellers.

In the end, Kiffin was fired just four games into his second season — a 5-15 record through 20 games to show for his time. Afterwards, the coach worked to clear his name, going on the journey that eventually led him to Oxford.

As time goes on, perhaps Lane Kiffin would fancy a chance to clear his name in the NFL. If his rebuilding of Ole Miss continues on as well as it has, teams will begin to call — if they haven’t already.