Heads up, SEC: The Lane Train may be pulling into a station near you in 2020.
For the past few days, especially of late, it had appeared that Lane Kiffin was on the verge of being named as the head football coach at Arkansas. Instead, one report out of Oxford Friday has the current head coach at Florida Atlantic all but ticketed for the job at another SEC West school -- Ole Miss.
Multiple sources telling me tonight Lane Kiffin to Ole Miss is as close to a done deal without being official as is possible. At this point, I expect an announcement Sunday.
— Neal McCready (@NealMcCready) December 7, 2019
Kiffin’s FAU squad will face UAB in the Conference USA championship game Saturday afternoon, hence the Sunday timeline for any potential announcement.
The 44-year-old Kiffin -- yes, he’s still just 44 -- has spent two separate stints in the SEC. The first was a blink-and-you-missed-it year as the head coach at Tennessee. From 2014-16, Kiffin was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Alabama.
Named the head coach at FAU in December of 2016, Kiffin has since led the Owls to a 25-13 record. A win Saturday would give FAU two conference championships in three seasons as the Owls won the title in Kiffin’s first season.
“I hope they still want me here,” Kiffin, amidst the Arkansas rumors, said Thursday in a radio interview. “Like I’ve said, I’ve never commented on searches but that’s what I plan on [returning to FAU next season].”
