Lane Kiffin asked in weekly press conference about officiating in Bama game
OXFORD, Miss. — According to the official box score, Alabama committed five penalties in its 30-24 win over Ole Miss Saturday. According to the naked eye, that number was woefully inaccurate.
Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin was asked about the calls — and no-calls — in his Monday press conference.
“You probably missed me by a day. I probably would’ve said a lot of different things,” Kiffin said when queried about his thoughts on the officiating.
Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart had his facemask grabbed – well, actually pulled – on two occasions, and only one was called.
Here’s the first one — where no flag was thrown.
here we go again pic.twitter.com/Z8c5uQ01Xi
— Not Ole Miss Problems (@OleMissNoProb) November 12, 2022
And then the one that was called was likely flagged simply because it was so flagrant; the sophomore’s helmet was turned completely around in front of a sellout crowd at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.
It’s a Rip-Off!! pic.twitter.com/9GLuQ2odyy
— The Rebel Walk (@TheRebelWalk) November 12, 2022
What was egregious about the call that went against Bama linebacker Dallas Turner was far worse than any targeting call could have been. He should have been ejected from the game but was allowed to remain on the field.
Later, Turner sacked Dart and as the defender was getting up, he shoved Dart’s face into the ground. Again, no call.
Where’s the call? pic.twitter.com/4ieTSJODPW
— The Rebel Walk (@TheRebelWalk) November 12, 2022
The lack of flags against Alabama with its obvious penalties against Dart caught Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin’s attention and he even addressed it with Dart’s mother after the game.
“Obviously the Jaxson part and the after the whistle stuff, you know, is disappointing,” Kiffin said.
“Talked to his (Jaxson’s) mom and just kind of apologized even though it’s out of our control. So, she mentioned it’s ashamed her son gets treated different based off what SEC program he’s at on game day and protected different.”
Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin
Kiffin went on to clarify that comment so he would not have to endure the SEC office’s ire.
“And let’s make sure that quote was right. It’s like she said not me. I really don’t want to get fined today. You can’t fine me for what someone else says.”
Coach Kiffin on comments from Jaxson Dart’s mother
Those calls were not the only ones missed in front of a national television audience watching the game on CBS.
Wide receiver Dayton Wade was leveled and knocked to the ground by an Alabama defensive back while in the middle of a pass route. Dart threw the ball to the spot where Wade was expected to be, but the ball hit the same turf that Wade was laying on after the hit.
Undisputed video evidence says there’s a strong possibility that Ole Miss should still have the ball. pic.twitter.com/q1BacRAXSq
— The Rebel Walk (@TheRebelWalk) November 12, 2022
Nope, there was no flag thrown to the dismay of the crowd who sent a cascade of boos toward the field.
Alabama scored a touchdown to tie the game in the third quarter and after the Tide receiver secured the ball in the end zone, another receiver who was out of bounds at the time, threw an elbow to the chest of Ole Miss safety Otis Reese.
So do we pretend like that punch just didn’t happen? Lol Alabama v ole miss Cooks TD 🔥 pic.twitter.com/B9m58RkSpF
— Ashley (@yomamawyd) November 12, 2022
No flag appeared. Although the touchdown would have been allowed, a dead-ball penalty against Alabama would have caused the Tide to kick off from their own 20 to give Ole Miss good field position to start its next drive.
Kiffin repeatedly implored the officials during the game, but to no avail.
As a former Alabama assistant, Kiffin has seen this scenario before. He has seen favorable treatment shown to certain programs. But as he did earlier in Monday’s press conference, Kiffin was measured with his comments on the subject.
“That’s been talked about for a long time being around this conference. I’ll just say I’ve been on both sides of it, and I’ll leave it at that.”
Coach Kiffin on penalty calls
At the end of the day, Kiffin knows he and his Rebels have to move forward and prepare to play Arkansas.
“Like I’ve said, we’ve put the game behind us. We can’t go back and win the game by calling a different play, or changing something. It is what it is.“
Coach Kiffin
Ole Miss falls to 8-2 on the year and 4-2 in league play, and the Rebels will travel to Arkansas Saturday night for the final regular-season road game of the season.
(Feature image credit: Josh McCoy, Ole Miss)
Steve Barnes
Steve Barnes joins The Rebel Walk staff as a senior writer and brings a trifecta of journalistic experience. As a writer, he has covered college sports for Rivals.com, Football.com and SaturdayDownSouth.com as well as served as a beat writer for various traditional newspapers.
He has been a broadcaster for arena football and several national tournament events for the National Junior College Athletic Association as well as hosting various shows on radio.
A former sports information director at Albany (Ga.) State University and an assistant at Troy and West Florida, he has helped host many NCAA conference, regional and national events, including serving five years on the media committee of the NCAA Division II World Series.
Barnes, a native of Pensacola, Fla., attended Ole Miss in 1983-84, where his first journalism teacher was David Kellum. The duo has come a long way since that time.
He will bring a proven journalistic track record, along with a knack for finding the out-of-the-ordinary story angles to The Rebel Walk.
Barnes continues to reside in Pensacola a mere ten minutes from the beach because he does have taste and a brain.
