As soon as Brian Kelly was fired atop the LSU program, the whisper within the profession was Nick Saban was the dream; Lane Kiffin might be the home run.
Well, that is how this search has started, but there’s more layers to find the replacement for Kelly in LSU’s search, which has just started its fourth week.
Conversations were had with Saban, several sources told FootballScoop, but it sounds like the seven-time national champion coach — who won a title at LSU in 2003 — has decided he doesn’t want to step back into things.
So, Lane Kiffin. The pursuit is real, the dollars are large. Will it come together?
Friends, that is expected to play out in the next few days we are told.
Sources tell FootballScoop that LSU’s offer to Kiffin would top Kirby Smart’s deal, currently the highest-paid college football coach. LSU’s new AD Verge Ausberry, new President Wade Rousse and even the Governor of the great state of Louisiana, Jeff Landry, are on board.
The question is, will Lane leave Ole Miss to go to one of their more detested rivals. Moreover, Kiffin has emerged two different times as the top target in the Florida Gators’ search to replace Billy Napier, several sources told FootballScoop. It’s believed those two parties also spoke in recent weeks.
Many in the profession do not expect Lane to make the move to LSU as the bad blood doesn’t feel like something Lane is into these days.
We are told to expect clarity on Lane and LSU within the next few days as the situation in Oxford has become nearly untenable.
So, if Nick politely declines and Lane ultimately declines, the question is where does LSU turn next.
Sources tell FootballScoop Ausberry has had in-depth conversations with agents and coaches and feels quite good about a number of options. We take the rest of this conversation behind the wall, as this is getting into a number of current head coaches.
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