Let the Games Begin! Lane Kiffin Talks Innovative Grove Bowl Games, Joey Chestnut Appearance
OXFORD, Miss. —Â Let the games begin!
Never being the one to conform, Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin has scrapped the Grove Bowl scrimmage that normally concludes spring practice. Instead, Kiffin’s incarnation is almost a mixture of college football and a spring carnival. But the Rebels’ head man has another way to describe the festivities that are scheduled for Saturday.
“I would kind of describe it as kind of a Pro Bowl Plus,” Kiffin said.
“Meaning the seven-on-seven (passing drill) would look like what you’ve watched in the Pro Bowl before, the flag football part. The players have drafted teams — coaches, players, everything for that. There’ll be some fan involvement in some different things, fraternities and sororities. There’ll be an obstacle course, a dunk competition and a hot dog eating competition and (world champion) Joey Chestnut will be there for that.“
Lane Kiffin on Grove Bowl Games
Chestnut has won the annual Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest 16 times.
But which Rebel will have the best shot at dethroning Chestnut? Offensive lineman Nate Kalepo has an idea.
“I’d probably say Diego Pounds, that’s a big boy,” Kalepo said. “Either Diego or (offensive lineman) Lane Hewett.”
Pounds checks in at 330 pounds, while Hewitt is a mere 280. Chestnut’s weight varies from 225-240 pounds.
The seven-on-seven competition will also be joined with other events including an obstacle course and a dunk contest. The rest of the events will be unveiled Saturday.
“We didn’t have a big announcement. We drafted leadership, splits on offense. Defense usually drafts the spring game teams, so I explained to them and kind of threw ideas out with them too. So I think they were really excited about it. It’ll be fun but competitive, too, with a unique scoring system, so all those things, if you advance in the dunk competition you get a certain amount of points.“
Lane Kiffin
Kiffin decided to go with the Spring Games instead of the annual scrimmage because evaluations have already been made on the players without another scrimmage that actually amounts to a game of two-handed touch football.
“I think if you think outside of the box and the traditional way of doing things, which I think it’s well known we do, and I think over time the spring game really isn’t of much value because if you watch people and what they do, very rarely do they run — unless a coach is worried about being on the hot seat and wants to please the fans — very rarely do they run more than a few types of plays and schemes in it, so I don’t know that the traditional spring game really gives you very much from an evaluation standpoint. I think it was kind of done because it used to be done that way in the book.“
Lane Kiffin on spring game format
This event that will involve not only the players but also the fans and Ole Miss student body, could catch on around the nation.
“It should be exciting for people to watch. Come see and I think it’ll be pretty cool for our fans,” Kiffin said.
Not only will it be cool, Kiffin may have become a trendsetter.
The events begin at 3 p.m. at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Both parking and admission are free.
Evelyn Van Pelt
Evelyn has covered sports for over two decades, beginning her journalism career as a sports writer for a newspaper in Austin, Texas. She attended Texas A&M and majored in English. Evelyn’s love for Ole Miss began when her daughter Katie attended the university on a volleyball scholarship. Evelyn created the Rebel Walk in 2013 and has served as publisher and managing editor since its inception.
