Ole Miss Player Leadership Steps In as Lane Kiffin Saga Spills Inside Rebels’ Football Facility; Where is the Commissioner?

OXFORD, Miss. — The Lane Kiffin saga has officially spilled from the administrative offices into the heart of the locker room, with tensions now rising between the Ole Miss head coach and his own players.

According to new reporting from Neal McCready at 247Sports, members of the Rebels’ leadership council planned to meet with Kiffin in his office at the Manning Center on Sunday morning. Their goal: to express frustration and demand clarity from the sixth-year head coach as rumors of his departure to LSU intensify.

Per a source, the Ole Miss leadership council is on its way to Lane Kiffin’s office in the Manning Center. Players are unhappy with Kiffin, and that’s putting it mildly. Ole Miss is deciding the machinations of an interim staff, with either Pete Golding or Joe Judge leading.

— Neal McCready (@NealMcCready) November 30, 2025

Inside the building, Athletics Director Keith Carter and Chancellor Glenn Boyce are continuing to evaluate contingency plans. The two options considered for interim head coach are QB coach Joe Judge or defensive coordinator Pete Golding. One would expect an announcement to be forthcoming soon.

(Here is our Rebel Walk Coaching Hot Board)

The timing of the drama could not be worse for a program experiencing its greatest season ever.

Kiffin has compiled a 55–19 record in Oxford, including a historic 11-1 regular season in 2025 — the first in school history. The Rebels are expected to land comfortably inside the 12-team College Football Playoff.

But with Kiffin bolting immediately for Baton Rouge — and reportedly indicating he would attempt to take his entire offensive staff with him — Ole Miss’ seeding — and momentum could suffer a blow.

For six years, Lane Kiffin reshaped Ole Miss football, reviving the program, modernizing the offense, and pushing the Rebels onto the national stage. But now, it looks as if the end could get ugly.

The leadership council stepping forward signals a growing divide — and an urgent need for a resolution. One question could be if there ever was a time for the SEC Commissioner, Greg Sankey, to step in and help mediate between two programs in his conference, it would be this situation. While we, of course, do not know for sure whether or not he has advised the schools and their administration in his official capacity as Commissioner, it would surely appear that is not the case as things appear to be deteriorating.

An agent sums up the situation in Oxford.
“Only Lane Kiffin would burn a bridge while still trying to stand on it,” source told @On3sports

— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) November 30, 2025

Please stay tuned.