Despite maintaining strong ties with his former program, Lane Kiffin’s recent moves involving Ole Miss assistants ahead of the Rebels’ semifinal run raised real concerns. And that prompted ACC Network analyst Jimbo Fisher to deliver a blunt take on Kiffin’s actions.

“It’s selfish. It’s stupid,” said the former Texas A&M head coach during Wednesday’s appearance. “That’s what it is. It’s stupid. And because here’s why I say that.

“He wanted to coach [Ole Miss] and thought he didn’t get his way. ‘Everybody get on the plane with me, or you don’t have a job.’ All right? And he makes them all go. Then he gets down there and takes a P.R. hit, because it looks bad that you really don’t care about the kids. Then he says, ‘Okay, you can go back. But here’s where he screwed up.'”

Before the CFP began, Kiffin allowed six Ole Miss assistants to follow him to LSU while still coaching the Rebels through their postseason run. At least, that was the plan. But after Ole Miss’ win over Georgia, uncertainty crept in. The winter transfer portal opened, and roster-building duties intensified. With that, attention shifted to Baton Rouge.

When the dust settled, offensive play-caller Charlie Weis Jr. and RBs coach Kevin Smith were cleared to stay on the sideline for the CFP semifinal. But WRs coach George McDonald and TEs coach Joe Cox will not be part of the Rebels’ CFP run.

That’s where the former national title–winning coach went on to add that he believes Lane Kiffin is showing a disregard for his former players at Ole Miss.

“He thought they were gonna lose to Georgia. The portal thing was all over with, and it was going to be all over with. He said, ‘I’ll look like a hero.’ Now, he’s got egg on his face because the real Lane came back out. You know what I’m saying? And if those guys were allowed to coach a first game, they should be allowed to coach, because those kids are doing something that you get one time in your life to do.”

Simply put, Fisher’s point was that players grow accustomed to playing under a specific coach, and when that coach suddenly isn’t there for the biggest games, it creates real problems. A last-minute change doesn’t just alter the game plan; it forces players to adapt to a different system, something that can be difficult for a team and potentially lead to losses.

As a coach who led FSU to a BCS national title in 2014, Fisher understands that reality better than most.

“Listen, I know, I’ve left a job, I get that,” said Fisher. “But if you took them on and said they’re never coming back, that’s fine. You set the rules of the game. You don’t change the rules in the middle of the game. And as a coach, it’s hurting the kids, and it pisses me off.”

If Lane Kiffin had taken those six assistants to LSU without putting them through back-and-forth decisions, it would have been more manageable for the Rebels. But in the middle of a CFP run, prioritizing LSU’s future while creating uncertainty for a team that had once given him all its trust didn’t sit well with Fisher.

And his take on Lane Kiffin becomes even more interesting when contrasted with former Alabama coach Nick Saban’s silence.

When Saban spoke about Kiffin’s LSU move, he praised him as “one of the brightest minds and one of the best play callers I’ve ever been around” and said he had no doubt Kiffin would be a great fit at LSU.

Yet Saban’s lack of comment on what many see as Kiffin’s selfish actions only serves to amplify Fisher’s criticism. While Saban confirmed that Kiffin called him for advice as a “senior professional” and that he tried to provide the best guidance without deciding for him, questions still arise.

More importantly, these questions gain weight considering Fisher’s complicated rivalry with Saban.

Lane Kiffin’s LSU is the place of the Fisher-Saban connection

The story begins in Baton Rouge. When Jimbo Fisher was Nick Saban’s offensive coordinator at LSU from 2000 to 2004, together, they won a national championship in 2003. But their relationship shifted when Fisher became a head coach, first at FSU, then at Texas A&M.

In October 2021, Fisher made history by becoming the first former Saban assistant to beat him, as Texas A&M stunned Alabama. Still, the rivalry turned public in May 2022 over NIL.

Saban claimed Texas A&M “bought every player on their team” to secure the nation’s No. 1 recruiting class, while Fisher fired back the very next day, calling Saban a “narcissist” and suggesting people dig into Saban’s own recruiting past.

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Fisher even said, “We’re done,” and quipped that Saban “should have been slapped.”

Then the feud cooled but left a mark on CFB lore. While Saban apologized for singling out Texas A&M, he kept his NIL concerns. Fisher declared the feud “over,” and the two shared a handshake before their 2023 matchup.

After the season, Fisher was let go from Texas A&M, and Saban retired, closing a dramatic chapter in SEC history.