Lane Kiffin recently received some advice from his former boss ahead of the Ole Miss Rebels’ 2024 campaign.
The Ole Miss Rebels are entering one of the most intriguing seasons in school history, and they will have to balance some high expectations with on-field performance.
The Rebels won a program-best 11 games in 2023, and they are gunning for a berth in the newly-expanded College Football Playoff this fall. There has been plenty of offseason praise for coach Lane Kiffin’s team, but how can Ole Miss handle these expectations and still perform at a high level once the games begin?
Enter former Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban.
Saban is slated to be an ESPN college football analyst this season after retiring from the Tide, and he recently gave a call to Kiffin to brush up on his Ole Miss knowledge. While on the phone, Kiffin asked his former boss on how his team should deal with the high bar that has been set for them in 2024.
Saban’s recommendation? Tune out the “rat poison.”
“He said, ‘Remind those players about rat poison,’” Kiffin said in a story from USA Today. “‘Remind them that those people that are writing that stuff on the internet about how great they are, … it’s probably some big fat guy in his underwear who doesn’t know (crap) about football.’”
Kiffin served as Saban’s offensive coordinator at Alabama in 2014-16, and he has often voiced his gratitude for the impact the legendary coach had on his own coaching career and path. Kiffin has even stolen the “rat poison” phrase on social media, always reminding his players and fans to tune out the outside noise and simply perform when the ball is put down.
Still, it’s hard not to see potential in this year’s Ole Miss team. Should the Rebels stay healthy, they could have one of the best rosters since Kiffin arrived in Oxford, a fact that the coach himself admitted at the SEC Meetings in Destin earlier this offseason.
“This is definitely the best roster,” Kiffin said. “I don’t know if it’ll be the best team. There’s a lot to be figured out with that. Some of the significant players we have were out for spring, so we’ll have a lot of work to do to bring them together to be the best team.
“A couple years ago, we won 10 regular season games and last year won 11 total games, most in school history. I do think the roster is better than that, but that’s a lot of work to do to be a better team.”
Ole Miss will open its 2024 season at home when it plays host to the FCS Furman Paladins on Aug. 31.
