Time to End of the Lane Kiffin Error
By Michael Schneid
I used to be one of, if not the biggest, Lane Kiffin fans. I loved his attitude, his swagger, and most of all his offensive play calling ability. Now, Kiffin has no swagger, his attitude is annoying, and he has seemingly lost all offensive knowledge over night. It's time for USC to fire Lane Kiffin.
The decision to fire Kiffin isn't even about all of his off-the-field baggage. Kiffin had well-documented NCAA violations in his one year at Tennessee and took over a USC program that was immediately hit with sanctions of their own. No bowl game for one year and a reduction in scholarships.
Kiffin took over USC in 2010 after Pete Carroll bolted for the NFL. Before that, Kiffin was Carroll's Offensive Coordinator in 2005-2006. He was hired by USC in 2001 and started as TE coach before becoming WR coach, then Offensive Coordinator and Recruiting Coordinator. Some say Pete Carroll pushed then-OC Norm Chow out the door (and to the NFL) to keep then-29 year old Kiffin from moving up the ladder elsewhere. So Chow moved onto the NFL and Kiffin became the new OC. Kiffin had a lot of responsibilities at a young age and was heavily responsible for developing a handful of NFL players and helping guide USC to all those BCS bowls.
Kiffin was surprising hired by the Oakland Raiders as their new head coach in 2007. Oakland had the first pick in 2007 draft and chose QB Jamarcus Russell, a pick that Kiffin heavily opposed. But he would quickly learn he had no power. He was just a puppet to late owner Al Davis. Kiffin was fired after 20 games. Not because he wasn't a good coach, he was never given a full chance (no one in Oakland ever is). Kiffin went 4-12 in 2007 and was fired 4 games into 200 after publicly feuding with late owner Al Davis.
Al Davis' press conference announcing the firing is still one of the most bizarre things ever. Davis was extremely aggitated and defensive calling Kiffin a "flat-out liar" and claiming he was "bringing disgrace to the organization". Davis says he was firing Kiffin with "cause" meaning he wasn't going to pay him, which was later approved by an arbitrator and Kiffin never saw a dime after being laid off.
In 2009, Kiffin took over Tennessee, where legendary long-time coach Philip Fulmer had just been fired. Kiffin decided to hire some guys from his Oakland staff. James Cregg left the Raiders with two weeks left in the season to join Kiffin at Tennessee. Raiders interim coach Tom Cable said the departure was ""wrong in the business of coaching"and he had lost all respect for Kiffin.
However, Kiffin brought a new energy and excitement to Knoxville and people were excited. He became the youngest head coach at 33. The Vols went 7-6. This time, Kiffin wasn't fired, he left for USC on his own terms. But he left Tennessee on bad terms.
Kiffin publicly (again) feuded with Urban Meyer, who was coaching Florida at the time, and ruffled feathers of many other coaches in the SEC. Kiffin claimed Meyer was cheating, that he called a recruit while the recruit was on Tennessee's camps. However, Kiffin would get in trouble because he mentioned the recruit by name, which is not allowed. And his allegations against Meyer were never proven.
Kiffin made inapporiate remarks to WR Alshon Jeffery while trying to recruit him. "He would end up pumping gas for the rest of his life like all the other players from that state who had gone to South Carolina."
Kiffin's enthusiasm and spunkiness is the reason why I was such a big fan. No one ever challenged Al Davis like he did. No one ever tried to call out Urban Meyer like that.
That finally takes us to 2010. Kiffin, who did despite all of his baggage, was actually highly thought of in Tennessee. He was the complete opposite of Philip Fulmer and most of all he was winning big games. But he decided to "go home" and take over at USC for Pete Carroll. Kiffin left in the middle of recruiting season, which left the Vols scrambling to save their class. They hired Derek Dooley, who would become their third head coach in three seasons.
Karma finally caught up to Kiffin at USC. Hired in January, NCAA hit USC with probation in June. The violations stemmed from the investigation of Reggie Bush. USC was ineligible for a bowl game for two seasons and suffered from a loss of scholarships. But that didn't stop Kiffin from recruiting or coaching. USC went 8-5 in 2010 and 10-2 in 2011, including a top 5 finish. All this momentum meant sky high expectations in LA in 2012.
But the Trojans flopped. Hard. After beginning the season ranked #1, USC finished unranked, 7-6 overall and lost the Sun Bowl to Georgia Tech. The season didn't begin without a little controversy though. Kiffin voted USC #1 on the coaches poll, something coaches are not really supposed to do, in an effort to uphold the integrity of the polls. He resigned as a coaches poll voter.
Everyone remembers the season's final game against Notre Dame. Kiffin looked lost and confused on the sideline. He was reading his giant laminated play card as if it was a menu at IHOP. His play calling down the stretch was terrible and Notre Dame would go on to win and play for the National Championship. Kiffin choked on national television. A guy under so much scrutiny and so unliked proved to the world watching that he wasn't a good coach. At least not a good play caller, which is kind of what he's known for.
Following the disappointing season Kiffin made changes to the coaching staff, which included replacing the defensive coordinator, who was also his father. The legendary Monte Kiffin "resigned" citing a desire to coach in the NFL again. But Lane undoubtedly pushed his father out the door. Has to make for awkward future holidays at the Kiffin household.
This year hasn't gotten off to a great start. Kiffin has gone back on forth on his QBs through the first two games, where USC is 1-1. It's not that USC has bad QBs, it's that Kiffin is holding them back. By forcing them to rotate series-by-series and not calling plays that will allow them to excel, Kiffin is holding their hands too tight and being way to conservative. The guy that thought challenging Al Davis is now playing scared.
After a 10-7 loss to Washington State last week, WR Marquise Lee says USC players held a players-only meeting to go over some things. Kiffin later denied this saying it never happen. But Lee was quoted as saying "Kiffin don't know." Well of course he doesn't. It's a "players-only" meeting. So it very probably happened, Kiffin wouldn't know either way.
Also earlier this week, Kiffin finally announced Cody Kessler is his starting QB for the season, a decision that only took two weeks into the season. Kiffin says he met with both QBs and discussed the decision in detail and they both understand. Or did they? Max Wittek claims the conversation was very brief and he didn't get much explanation as to why Kiffin chose Kessler over him. To make matters even worse, Kiffin actually refused to meet with the media to discuss his decision. He made a YouTube clip (this seriously happened) and explained his QB decision. Watch his decision here if you really want to.
What happened to the coach who took a very depleted roster in Tennessee to 7 wins and the Chick-Fil-A Bowl? What happened to the coach who led USC to an upset at Oregon in 2011 despite having nothing on the line? What happened to the guy who helped guide USC to those BCS games once upon a time and helped develop a handful of NFL players with his playcalling ability as an offensive assistant?
That guy, that coach, seemed lost. Now it seems like USC is stuck with a spoiled arrogant, selfish joke on the sideline who is probably already thinking about what's next. But what could be next? He burned SEC bridges. He's almost destroyed USC. He wasn't ready for the NFL and who knows if he'd ever get another chance there, since he really hasn't proved anything and isn't very well liked.
Current USC AD Pat Haden didn't hire Lane Kiffin. He inherited him, and all of his problems. So there isn't a great incentive for Haden to keep Kiffin. Haden just made the great decision to bring Andy Enfeld, the former Florida Gulf Coast (aka Dunk City) head coach to USC to turn around the basketball progra. Surely, Haden can pull off a similarly strong hire for the historical football program.
Who knows what the future holds for Lane Kiffin. Certainly, he won't get another high profile job. Not yet. He's only 38 so there has to be more out there for him to ruin. Maybe he can take "MACtion" to another level? Or he can roll around the new American Athletic Conference? Maybe his dad, Monte, the current Dallas Cowboys Defensive Coordinator, can give him recommendation with Jerry Jones. Perhaps, Lane can stand on sideline and fix Demarcus Ware's pads or help get Tony Romo water. But the once highly touted offensive guru has lost his mind. Literally and figuratively. His offensive mind is gone and now he's just a walking dead duck in LA.
The only logical end game at this point is for Lane Kiffin to coach Tim Tebow. Whether that's in the NFL, Arena Football League, Canada Football League, Indoor Continental Football League, or the XFL. Fans and media will want to see Lane Kiffin and Tim Tebow together.
Share your thoughts on Lane Kiffin below or email me about this story.
I used to be one of, if not the biggest, Lane Kiffin fans. I loved his attitude, his swagger, and most of all his offensive play calling ability. Now, Kiffin has no swagger, his attitude is annoying, and he has seemingly lost all offensive knowledge over night. It's time for USC to fire Lane Kiffin.
The decision to fire Kiffin isn't even about all of his off-the-field baggage. Kiffin had well-documented NCAA violations in his one year at Tennessee and took over a USC program that was immediately hit with sanctions of their own. No bowl game for one year and a reduction in scholarships.
Al Davis' press conference announcing the firing is still one of the most bizarre things ever. Davis was extremely aggitated and defensive calling Kiffin a "flat-out liar" and claiming he was "bringing disgrace to the organization". Davis says he was firing Kiffin with "cause" meaning he wasn't going to pay him, which was later approved by an arbitrator and Kiffin never saw a dime after being laid off.
In 2009, Kiffin took over Tennessee, where legendary long-time coach Philip Fulmer had just been fired. Kiffin decided to hire some guys from his Oakland staff. James Cregg left the Raiders with two weeks left in the season to join Kiffin at Tennessee. Raiders interim coach Tom Cable said the departure was ""wrong in the business of coaching"and he had lost all respect for Kiffin.
However, Kiffin brought a new energy and excitement to Knoxville and people were excited. He became the youngest head coach at 33. The Vols went 7-6. This time, Kiffin wasn't fired, he left for USC on his own terms. But he left Tennessee on bad terms.
Kiffin publicly (again) feuded with Urban Meyer, who was coaching Florida at the time, and ruffled feathers of many other coaches in the SEC. Kiffin claimed Meyer was cheating, that he called a recruit while the recruit was on Tennessee's camps. However, Kiffin would get in trouble because he mentioned the recruit by name, which is not allowed. And his allegations against Meyer were never proven.
Kiffin made inapporiate remarks to WR Alshon Jeffery while trying to recruit him. "He would end up pumping gas for the rest of his life like all the other players from that state who had gone to South Carolina."
Kiffin's enthusiasm and spunkiness is the reason why I was such a big fan. No one ever challenged Al Davis like he did. No one ever tried to call out Urban Meyer like that.
That finally takes us to 2010. Kiffin, who did despite all of his baggage, was actually highly thought of in Tennessee. He was the complete opposite of Philip Fulmer and most of all he was winning big games. But he decided to "go home" and take over at USC for Pete Carroll. Kiffin left in the middle of recruiting season, which left the Vols scrambling to save their class. They hired Derek Dooley, who would become their third head coach in three seasons.
Karma finally caught up to Kiffin at USC. Hired in January, NCAA hit USC with probation in June. The violations stemmed from the investigation of Reggie Bush. USC was ineligible for a bowl game for two seasons and suffered from a loss of scholarships. But that didn't stop Kiffin from recruiting or coaching. USC went 8-5 in 2010 and 10-2 in 2011, including a top 5 finish. All this momentum meant sky high expectations in LA in 2012.
But the Trojans flopped. Hard. After beginning the season ranked #1, USC finished unranked, 7-6 overall and lost the Sun Bowl to Georgia Tech. The season didn't begin without a little controversy though. Kiffin voted USC #1 on the coaches poll, something coaches are not really supposed to do, in an effort to uphold the integrity of the polls. He resigned as a coaches poll voter. Everyone remembers the season's final game against Notre Dame. Kiffin looked lost and confused on the sideline. He was reading his giant laminated play card as if it was a menu at IHOP. His play calling down the stretch was terrible and Notre Dame would go on to win and play for the National Championship. Kiffin choked on national television. A guy under so much scrutiny and so unliked proved to the world watching that he wasn't a good coach. At least not a good play caller, which is kind of what he's known for.
Following the disappointing season Kiffin made changes to the coaching staff, which included replacing the defensive coordinator, who was also his father. The legendary Monte Kiffin "resigned" citing a desire to coach in the NFL again. But Lane undoubtedly pushed his father out the door. Has to make for awkward future holidays at the Kiffin household.
This year hasn't gotten off to a great start. Kiffin has gone back on forth on his QBs through the first two games, where USC is 1-1. It's not that USC has bad QBs, it's that Kiffin is holding them back. By forcing them to rotate series-by-series and not calling plays that will allow them to excel, Kiffin is holding their hands too tight and being way to conservative. The guy that thought challenging Al Davis is now playing scared.
After a 10-7 loss to Washington State last week, WR Marquise Lee says USC players held a players-only meeting to go over some things. Kiffin later denied this saying it never happen. But Lee was quoted as saying "Kiffin don't know." Well of course he doesn't. It's a "players-only" meeting. So it very probably happened, Kiffin wouldn't know either way.
Also earlier this week, Kiffin finally announced Cody Kessler is his starting QB for the season, a decision that only took two weeks into the season. Kiffin says he met with both QBs and discussed the decision in detail and they both understand. Or did they? Max Wittek claims the conversation was very brief and he didn't get much explanation as to why Kiffin chose Kessler over him. To make matters even worse, Kiffin actually refused to meet with the media to discuss his decision. He made a YouTube clip (this seriously happened) and explained his QB decision. Watch his decision here if you really want to.
What happened to the coach who took a very depleted roster in Tennessee to 7 wins and the Chick-Fil-A Bowl? What happened to the coach who led USC to an upset at Oregon in 2011 despite having nothing on the line? What happened to the guy who helped guide USC to those BCS games once upon a time and helped develop a handful of NFL players with his playcalling ability as an offensive assistant?
That guy, that coach, seemed lost. Now it seems like USC is stuck with a spoiled arrogant, selfish joke on the sideline who is probably already thinking about what's next. But what could be next? He burned SEC bridges. He's almost destroyed USC. He wasn't ready for the NFL and who knows if he'd ever get another chance there, since he really hasn't proved anything and isn't very well liked.
Current USC AD Pat Haden didn't hire Lane Kiffin. He inherited him, and all of his problems. So there isn't a great incentive for Haden to keep Kiffin. Haden just made the great decision to bring Andy Enfeld, the former Florida Gulf Coast (aka Dunk City) head coach to USC to turn around the basketball progra. Surely, Haden can pull off a similarly strong hire for the historical football program.
Who knows what the future holds for Lane Kiffin. Certainly, he won't get another high profile job. Not yet. He's only 38 so there has to be more out there for him to ruin. Maybe he can take "MACtion" to another level? Or he can roll around the new American Athletic Conference? Maybe his dad, Monte, the current Dallas Cowboys Defensive Coordinator, can give him recommendation with Jerry Jones. Perhaps, Lane can stand on sideline and fix Demarcus Ware's pads or help get Tony Romo water. But the once highly touted offensive guru has lost his mind. Literally and figuratively. His offensive mind is gone and now he's just a walking dead duck in LA.
The only logical end game at this point is for Lane Kiffin to coach Tim Tebow. Whether that's in the NFL, Arena Football League, Canada Football League, Indoor Continental Football League, or the XFL. Fans and media will want to see Lane Kiffin and Tim Tebow together.
Share your thoughts on Lane Kiffin below or email me about this story.
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