'Alright, do it again': Lane Kiffin wants same environment for Ole Miss' early game with Auburn
There is no secret that the fan attendance and atmosphere inside Vaught-Hemingway Stadium for Ole Miss home football games has been a sometimes sore subject for Lane Kiffin.
On Monday, the third-year Ole Miss head coach brought it up again in his opening comments but in a different manner coming off the win over then-No. 7 Kentucky last Saturday.
From kickoff at 11 a.m. CT to Jared Ivey forcing a fumble on Wildcats quarterback Will Levis and sealing the game for Ole Miss over three hours later, the stands were packed.
The environment Kiffin was asking for last week he received and then some. During his weekly press conference Kiffin took the time to thank the Ole Miss fans, going as far to credit them potentially being the cause of a key Kentucky penalty late.
“The crowd was really to our advantage, which is what the goal has been,” Kiffin said. “It impacts pregame. You hear from recruits, what they say after games. Not just what they think when they watch on TV but when they’re here.
“It impacted the game. There’s three penalties on them on offense. Two false starts and an illegal shift, to me is a false start as well. Not being set that could be credited to the crowd. You could say they won the game. That’s the way we want it to be.”
Ole Miss is returning that early time slot and Kiffin is asking fans to run it back in two weeks.
The Southeastern Conference announced the kickoff times for the Oct. 15 slate of games on Monday. For a second straight home game Ole Miss will be one of the first teams to tee it up, hosting Auburn at 11 a.m. CT on ESPN.
For a second time in three weeks the Rebels will follow College Gameday. This is an approach ESPN has started taking, securing games with top-ranked teams or key SEC matchups for its first slot on Saturdays as a way to keep all the millions of eyeballs it has from the flagship pregame show.
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Once again, Kiffin and Ole Miss have been given the main stage and the spotlight when the Tigers roll into Oxford in 12 days.
“Like we tell our players, ‘Alright, do it again,'” Kiffin said. “So we’re getting to have it this week but next home game, as I’m walking up (here), they announce same time, same network, same everything. So lets re-do that from an atmosphere standpoint the same way, regardless of what teams are ranked.
“It dramatically impacts our program. Besides the players, as I mentioned the recruiting, and it’s huge. Lets do it again.”
The Auburn matchup is only the second 11 a.m. kickoff for Ole Miss this season but it eliminates another opportunity for a SEC night game.
This year’s Egg Bowl with Mississippi State is already set for a 6 p.m. CT kickoff on Thanksgiving night, ensuring at least one conference game at home when the sun is down. Alabama on Nov. 12 is the last opportunity to get a second night game at home for the Rebels.
