It’s been almost 11 months since Lane Kiffin abruptly left Tennessee after one season for his dream job at USC. Even after all this time, the anger over the departure has abated very little and still leaves a bad taste in the mouths of Vols Nation whenever the “L” word is mentioned.
At least one person in the great state, though, longs for the days when Kiffin’s mouth and antics off the field made more headlines than what his Volunteers accomplished on the field.
UT’s basketball coach Bruce Pearl, if you haven’t heard, has found himself in a bit of hot water with the NCAA. The embattled coach has been suspended by the SEC for eight conference games after lying to NCAA investigators, and has faced a firestorm of criticism from people both inside and outside of the hoops program.
Speaking at the Knoxville Quarterback Club Monday, Pearl lamented the fact that Kiffin is no longer around to take some of the heat off of him and his situation.
“I’ve made mistakes. I clearly did,” Pearl said to those attending the meeting. “But what I was hoping for was that some other dumbass would get on the front page and take me off the hook.
“I miss Lane Kiffin.”
Ah yes. Shots at Lane Kiffin; the gift that just keeps on giving.
Of course, it probably would’ve been a lot funnier if it had come from somebody who hadn’t brought monumental shame and embarrassment to the university, but I guess you take what you can get on the whack-a-Kiffin front.
Especially seeing as how the Trojans coach has actually been behaving himself and doing an underrated job in the midst of the first season of the post-sanction era at USC. Forget Texas and Florida on the field; Kiffin being the epitome of off-field decorum might be the most disappointing development of the 2010 season.
