Lane Kiffin after a busy recruitment run is getting to finally unwind with his family in the Bahamas. He posted a video from Cat Island, and the beach looked quiet and calm. But the coach in him never is completely relaxed or clocked out. Sitting beside him though was no five-star prospect, but his 12-year-old nephew Christian “Cookie” Kiffin. And he tossed a simple question, “What do you think you would like to be when you grow older? The answer says plenty about the Kiffin family.
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Without any hesitation, Cookie replies, “I’ll be a head football coach and take you on vacations.” Kiffin quickly remarks and ends the video with “it’ll be interesting when we are all grown up.”
What will be when we are all grown up?? @LSUfootball 🤣 pic.twitter.com/va0TPeH8vQ
— Lane Kiffin (@Lane_Kiffin) February 17, 2026
Christian ‘Cookie’ Kiffin is the son of Lane’s brother Chris, who is LSU’s co-DC. Before coming to LSU, Cookie was with his father at Ole Miss, where Chris served as defensive analyst. It’s obvious that during his time, Cookie has absorbed key footballing aspects and already has chosen his career trajectory.
In December, Kiffin posted a photo with Cookie where the LSU head coach was homeschooling Cookie. The duo was sitting together with dumbbells, and Kiffin captioned it “Second one is now here #homeSchoolWithUncle.” More recently, 3 days ago, Cookie was with Lane and his father, Chris, at an LSU baseball game. Before that, Cookie accompanied the LSU head coach on recruiting trips.
Interestingly, Cookie Kiffin is termed more recently as a ‘secret weapon’ for the Tigers’ recruiting efforts. He has dominated recent recruiting visits and used his pickleball skills to help secure commitments. The 12-year-old visited former Colorado lineman Jordan Seaton with Lane and others. Moreover, Cookie played pickleball with LSU’s new WR Jackson Harris and quickly bonded.
Tight end Malachi Thomas even joked about getting “smoked” on court by Cookie and called him Lane’s “secret recruiting tactic.” It’s almost strange but Lane Kiffin-esque for LSU to rely on a cookie for their commitments. The 12-year-old has been dubbed “closer” by LSU fans for a reason, and his drop shots are already earning widespread praise. Yet, transitioning to football head coaching shows Cookie’s reverence for his family legacy.
Lane Kiffin has been in the head coaching world ever since taking over the Oakland Raiders as head coach in 2007. Thereafter, the head coach had stints with Tennessee, USC, Florida Atlantic, and Ole Miss. Although much of Kiffin’s career has been marred by controversies, that also includes his Oxford exit. Yet, one can’t deny the way he turned around Ole Miss.
Lane Kiffin and his father’s influence are carrying over to Cookie
Kiffin had led Ole Miss to a 55-19 record and became the program’s third-winningest head coach in just 6 years. The pinnacle of Kiffin’s prowess was the 2025 season as he led Ole Miss to its first-ever playoff berth. But just like how Lane Kiffin is influencing Cookie. The 50-year-old came into the coaching world, following his father’s footsteps.
“There are very few superheroes and very few great ones that loved everyone and tried to help everyone they came in touch with forever,” Lane said about his father, Monte Kiffin. “Hero is really not the right term for him. It’s a superhero. That’s what he was to the people that he touched. Really feel like there are very few superheroes and very few great ones that loved everyone and tried to help everyone they came in touch with forever. Whether you were big or small, whatever you were, he tried to help.”
The football community widely considers Monte Kiffin as one of the greatest defensive minds in football history. Coaches also praise him for developing the iconic Tampa 2 defense. Moreover, his 13-year tenure as Tampa Bay’s DC under Jon Gruden and Tony Dungy is considered legendary. Winning the 2002 Super Bowl was probably the cherry on top, and even without that, Monte Kiffin would sit at the top of the pyramid.
Although Monte passed away on July 11, 2024, his legacy and influence live on with his family. That influence carried over to Lane Kiffin, and now it is carrying over to Cookie. It’s almost like the Kiffin family’s personal heritage that Cookie is trying to kindle.