While Ole Miss is preparing for their official chase for the National Championship, Lane Kiffin is in Baton Rouge preparing for his first season leading the LSU Tigers. After Brian Kelly was fired at LSU and Billy Napier was fired by Florida, Kiffin became a top name to watch in both searches, and it ended with him picking the Tigers, knowing it meant that his time in Oxford was over before a Playoff run.
The fallout from Lane Kiffin's departure was ugly, starting with the fact that he took most of the offensive staff with him to Baton Rouge, but they've now returned to help the Rebels. When Kiffin left Oxford everyone got a preview of what his return could look like as fans showed up to boo him at the airport.
Lane Kiffin getting on the plane at the Oxford AirPort. 4 coaches in total. @cadesmith_3 @YancyPorter @MartySmithESPN pic.twitter.com/1uiXx4DWiC
— Les Goh (@GohLes1) November 30, 2025
Part of what makes Lane Kiffin leaving Ole Miss for LSU such an entertaining story is the fact that he'll eventually have to face his former team. We saw when Lane Kiffin returned to Knoxville for the first time as a head coach, the Volunteers didn't forget the way he left their program.
Four years ago, @Lane_Kiffin made his return to Tennessee as head coach of @OleMissFB.
— E60 (@E60) October 16, 2025
The Vols fans made one thing clear: they remembered his late night departure from their team.
'The Many Lives of Lane Kiffin' is streaming on the @ESPN app pic.twitter.com/IvcXn3zIGx
On Thursday Night, the SEC revealed its schedule for the 2026 season, as the conference will now play 9 league games. The date for Lane Kiffin's return to Oxford has been set as he'll bring the LSU Tigers to Ole Miss on September 19th, which will be the SEC opener for both programs.
SEC OPENER FOR BOTH TEAMS 🍿
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) December 12, 2025
Lane Kiffin returns to Oxford in Week 3 👀 pic.twitter.com/6C6VJ4dCDd
Lane Kiffin's return to Oxford is already going to be one of the most highly anticipated games of the season, and that's before the true start of the offseason. The Transfer Portal will open in January and the war between Ole Miss and Lane Kiffin could hit the next level especially if he starts to bring key pieces from the Rebels roster to Baton Rouge.
Every year moving forward, we're going to have an incredible rivalry to follow, and this first matchup will be one of the most memorable.