Mississippi State football is getting ready for a Black Friday Egg Bowl showdown with No. 6 Ole Miss in Starkville, but the conversation around that game has little to do with the game itself. All the focus is on Rebels coach Lane Kiffin and where he will be coaching next season.
LSU and Florida have been publicly courting Kiffin to take over their respective programs, and Kiffin has made it quite clear he's interested, particularly with the LSU opening. This has created an incredibly awkward situation in Oxford, as the Rebels are in line to reach the College Football Playoff, potentially as a high seed.
The belief is Kiffin would not be allowed to coach Ole Miss in the playoff if he were leaving, but would he even be allowed to coach the Egg Bowl at this point? Ole Miss was pushing Kiffin for a decision leading into Egg Bowl week, and today he had a meeting with school leaders over his future.
Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter put out a statement regarding his meeting with Kiffin, and in it, he provided some clarity on the timeline for when to expect resolution on this matter...
Let’s lock in and focus on keeping the Golden Egg! pic.twitter.com/5xPfDozhl2
— Keith Carter (@KeithCarterOM) November 21, 2025
Carter ends his statement with a pretty important message, that being that Lane Kiffin will make an announcement on his future the Saturday after the Egg Bowl. In theory, that means his status as the head coach of the Rebels moving forward could still go either way.
However, putting out this statement means it's pretty clear how this is going to end...
Lane Kiffin's departure seems inevitable, and Mississippi State can take advantage
We can all be serious with ourselves and read between the lines here. Keith Carter putting out this statement regarding Lane Kiffin's future is telling us what's happening without explicitly telling us what's happening.
It is practically inevitable that he is leaving Oxford, likely for LSU. If Kiffin weren't leaving, it would have announced today by Ole Miss. Some may still try to say this is all a work from Kiffin to get a rise out of the schools hoping to hire him and then triumphantly announce he's sticking with the Rebels, rallying the troops going into the playoffs and portal season.
But the reality is that the frustrations from the Ole Miss fanbase, boosters, athletic department, and even the team itself have already reached the boiling point. They're livid that Kiffin would be doing this ahead of an important rivalry game with all that's on the line for the program. Even if this was all some elaborate stunt and he returns, he's not going to be lifted up in glory at this point. He would instead be chastised for creating such a massive and completely unnecessary distraction.
Waiting to announce his future until after the Egg Bowl, keeping things technically unresolved for another week, means the writing is on the wall. He's finishing out the regular season with his team, and then win or lose, he's leaving.
And that's a great thing for Mississippi State.
This is going to be hanging over the Ole Miss team all throughout their preparation for the Egg Bowl and potentially even once they take the field at Davis Wade Stadium next Friday. One has to think that's going to impact their focus, even with all that is at stake.
There is an an opportunity for the Bulldogs to pounce on a vulnerable and distracted Rebels squad. That's all the more reason for Jeff Lebby to have his team as prepared as possible to take advantage of potential mistakes from Ole Miss. They've got a real shot to send Lane Kiffin packing, and more importantly, earn a much-needed sixth win to make a bowl. The MSU program needs momentum, and they're getting a lob for an alley-oop. They have to convert the dunk.