What happens when you take someone who likes to keep things serious and pair them up with someone who doesn’t care? Well, you get the Nick Saban and Lane Kiffin duo. It was a tough time for former HC Saban when Kiffin was working as the offensive coordinator on the team. On August 23rd, when AL.com covered the book by John Talty, much behind-the-scenes information was released. “I ain’t never had a coach I can’t control,” Saban had said regarding Kiffin. Their entire relationship was struggling from the get-go. Kiffin was always more rebellious and young and Saban, on the other hand, enjoyed maintaining control over his camp.

Now, amidst the ongoing drama after the book release, John Talty joins AL.com Ben Flanagan on August 28th on YouTube, to lay bare the entire situation between Kiffin and Saban. “John, you made headlines this week with some passages from the book. Do you think that they had any genuine affection for each other in the midst of all that tension?” Ben was quick to ask. “Yeah, I think that they do, and I think that some of what we’ve seen after the fact, I think it’s like looking back with hindsight, and I think you can appreciate the moments even more,” John was quick to note. Kiffin promised Saban that he wouldn’t commit to being hired by other teams while working at Alabama. however, Kiffin being Kiffin, broke that promise. This prompted Saban to take steps, and eventually, he fired Kiffin during the CFP semifinal. Kiffin was always good with the offense. He helped Saban and the team grab the 2015 championship. However, things became sour after Kiffin reported refused to “adapt to Saban’s practices”. 

The good thing is, that Kiffin probably realized later on that whatever he had done was not good. “And I think Lane’s talked a lot about how, since leaving Alabama and being a head coach again, that he better understands why Nick did what he did,” John noted. Becoming the HC at Ole Miss gave Kiffin the realization that it is truly annoying if your staff member behaves like that. “Adding more appreciation for Coach (Saban) and what he did for my career,” Kiffin had noted during an interview. This alone proved that during his time at Alabama. he did learn a lot from Nick Saban. Technically, Saban saved what was left of Kiffin’s career after the USC firing. The best part about all of this is that now Saban himself has strong faith that Ole Miss could be a solid team this season.

Saban’s praise for Ole Miss

Back on August 23rd on the Pat McAfee Show, Nick Saban was quick to point out that Ole Miss is going to be an amazing team this year. “Ole Miss is gonna be good,” Saban had noted. A lot of the credit should be given to Kiffin. Whatever he learned from Saban, he has applied that to his team. Starting off his fifth season at Oxford, Kiffin has prepped the team with a solid defensive line.

Back on On3, Andy Staples had pointed out that Ole Miss has the potential to become the championship winner this year. The credit goes to Kiffin’s new hirings. The HC has managed to bring in 2 solid players; Princely Umanmielen and Walter Nolen. Princely already made his mark while playing for the Gators with 22 solo tackles under his belt. Nolen, on the other hand, comes with his experience of playing for Texas. On3 also marked the kid as the No.2 national prospect. Both these guys, under the guidance of coach Pete Golding, could become a force to reckon with. We’ll see in time how right Saban was with his small praise for Kiffin and the Rebels.