Lane Kiffin currently sits at No.9 in an oscillating headspace. After a humbling loss against Kentucky, the Rebels staged a furious comeback against Georgia last week and are now counting the days to face Florida Gators ahead on the road. The unexpected victory over the Bulldogs earned the Rebels a bye week at fortuitous time. Certainly, it gave them an edge prior to the last two games remaining on the card, but a victory on the Ben Hill Griffin Stadium is still hanging in the balance as CFB analyst Josh Pate presages a storm.

Florida might not have reached an unfathomable high under Napier. But their latest win over No. 22 LSU last Saturday at The Swamp gave a silver lining to Napier, who has constantly been on the hot seat for an underwhelming season. Freshman quarterback DJ Lagway’s head-turner performance was the brownie point Napier badly needed to regain the fans’ trust. Lagway survived an injury and made a quicker-than-expected comeback to shoulder the season. Despite the schedule not doing them any favor, can his rebounded confidence in the Gators be a threat to Kiffin’s Ole Miss?

Josh Pate gave a dual-minded take on this. But it weighed down the Rebels more. ”I respect Ole Miss, I think they are the most underrated team in the country, I think they are going to win the game and cover, and I also wouldn’t be shocked if they lost, ” said the pundit, playing a spoiler in Lane Kiffin’s CFP hope.

”That makes no sense, I know, but if you understand the profile of these two teams right now, you understand why I am not betting a dime on this game,” Pate justified his perplexing note.

The first-ever encounter between the two heavyweight coaches, Kiffin and Napier, is, however, going to be much more intriguing than it meets the eye. The two shared a common history, as both of them worked under Alabama legend Nick Saban, with one (Napier) being the receivers coach (2013-16) and the other (Kiffin) being the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. But it seems Lane Kiffin has adopted Saban’s policy way better as he gave Saban a taste of his own medicine for putting his team on an unwanted pedestal.

Lane Kiffin played it safe against Nick Saban’s ‘over-selling’

The SEC isn’t a joke; it’s something Kiffin is learning the hardest way while looking at the current standing of his team’s SEC title game berth. It’s a double trap for the Rebels. Like even if he wouldn’t have earned the bye, he would have some mercy on a loss. But now, he has to win two straight games to hit a bullseye, which is way challenging for a team that has already eaten up two losses. So, Kiffin would have chosen the first path if he had a choice. Amidst the chaotic stand, Nick Saban had some high words on Ole Miss that surprisingly triggered his former peer.

ESPN College GameDay at the Georgia vs Tennessee game in Athens, Saban said that Ole Miss is really going strong. To cut it right out there, Lane Kiffin fired back, ”He’s now become the rat poisoner. He’s doing exactly what he complained about.”

The rat poison theory is Saban’s brainchild during Bama’s Texas A&M win in 2017. The legendary Bama coach alerted his players not to fall victim to a media tactic that wanted to derail their momentum through over-hyping.

Kiffin learned it from the best and applied it right on the spot. Will it do any favor to the veteran at Swamp this Saturday?