Lane Kiffin, after a dramatic 2025 season, is finally where he wanted to be. The Tigers’ head coach has a lot to prove in his debut at the position. However, Kiffin received a strong warning from Nick Saban before landing at Baton Rouge.

Kiffin could have happily spent some more time at Oxford, especially after the Rebels’ hot run in the playoffs. But LSU’s constant wooing and strong push made that idea bleak for him. He was also being approached for the Florida job, for which he was a favorite. Caught in a dilemma, Kiffin sought advice from former boss, Nick Saban.

“When I called Coach Saban and talked it through with him, he said, you know, ‘Lane, you’ll always regret if you don’t go to LSU. It’s the best job in America,’” Kiffin recalled from that conversation at the Baton Rouge Leadership Power Breakfast event. “And when he said that, that really made the decision for me. And as I’ve looked at it, it has pushed me.

“It has gotten me out of a comfort zone that we were doing amazing things. But you come here, and you feel the power of the place, and it drives you every day to even go to another level.”

It’s true; the bar is now a lot higher for Lane Kiffin as LSU’s head coach. He has to bring glory to a blueblood program that has struggled in the past few seasons. What Kiffin did at Ole Miss this past season, he has to do at Baton Rouge regularly. He accepted the LSU job, feeling settled after Saban’s wise words. But only time will tell if Kiffin can do the “best job in America” justice.

This is a developing story…