Darrell

I grew up in the south and am well aware of football there. But don't for one instance think that football is so much more important than anywhere else. Because it really isn't. This is a fallacy that people in the south have. It is just as big in Texas and in California and Idaho and Michigan, and in Washington etc..

Furthermore, Trust, honesty and honor are not virtues that exist solely in the south and nowhere else. Also, your column implies that every person in the south is trustworthy, honest, and honorable. However, having lived there and gone to church there, I know better. Honest people live everywhere. Liars live everywhere too..

Lane Kiffen left Tennessee to take another job that he felt was dear to him. He mentioned so in his press conference at the school in California. He mentioned that Tennessee was a great job and one of the best in the country. I am sure he meant it.


You write an article that implies that Lane Kiffen knew the coach in California was going to leave his program and that he was going to get the job and therefore was planning to leave all along. Your writeup states that he lied to the people of Tennessee. Are you saying that he planned for Pete Carroll to leave and USC to offer him the job? Or did things just happen. He made a decision. A very big decision for him and his family and one that carries a tremendous amount of risk. I am sure his wife and kids played a part in that big decision too.

What you fail to mention is that as soon as Kiffen was contacted by USC he called the AD of Tennessee and informed him of the job offer. The AD wanted to know if Lane was interested. Lane said yes. So Lane didn't hide this. He didn't lie to people. He informed people when the offer came through. I would wager that he was surprised that he was even offered the job.

How risky is this move for Lane Kiffen. VERY!!!!If Lane Kiffen fails his football career is over!!! Who would hire him after his jumping ship from Tennessee and going to California. Had he failed at Tennessee, I am sure he would be given another shot somewhere else. Alot of coaches who fail at one place are given a chance somewhere else. He being so young and with alot of experience good or bad would probably be given a second chance somewhere.

Now the other thing you mention is the alleged recruiting violations. One of the kids along with his family moved from California to Tennessee just a month prior. Obviously he was very upset about the news of his new coach leaving. This is understandable. Who wouldn't be upset in his shoes? However, Could this young 18 or 19 year old be vindictive?? It wouldn't be the first time. The latest news about Craig James' kid, Adam James, is that he locked himself in the closet to get back at that coach and took those video pictures with his phone. This kid of sets a precedent doesn't it...

I don't know what happenned. But what I do know is this; if my kid went to a particular school because he had bonded with a coach. And the coach left. I certainly would want to know that if attended the first day of class and I had doubts about that school and later wished to transfer that I would have to sit out a year of eligibility. This is material news!!!

Since Lane Kiffen resigned on 1/12 and the first day of class at Tennessee was 1/13, there really wasn't much time was there. And help me out, but who at Tennessee was calling the kids to inform them of their rights??????? My guess is nobody.... So if the other coach was calling them to inform them of their rights is that a bad thing???

I agree with you. I hope one of them recorded the conversation. Then everyone will know what happened. As of now, it is simply he said, she said. If the coach was offering scholarships, then maybe against the rules and maybe not real cool, but in the end, it is the kids right to choose isn't it.. And if Tennessee is where they want to go, then they will remain there. If they were going to the school because of the coach should they be chained??? That wouldn't be cool either...

Happens all the time. I am sure you wouldn't want it to happen to your kid..



My point of writing this is to ask people to do their own research. Not jump to conclusions. I am not a Lane Kiffen fan but neither his enemy. Heck the kid is 34 years old.. He might become a great coach. He might be a dud. How can you tell.

Bobby Bowden wasn't an instant success.. And I am sure you can find alot of recruiting violations with Nick Saban and Urban Meyer too...

Appreciate the comments.

While I realize that football fans in States such as Texas, California, etc are just as passionate as those found in the South ... in those areas of the country (with the exception of Texas), it is a sport and not an un-official religion. As you most likely well know, in the deep South, it is more like a religion than a sport ... sad, but true.

While Kiffin did (supposedly) take the only job he considered to be his 'dream' job ... the way in which the coaching staff exited was crazy: ask any of the reporters in this area. The press conference was delayed to get the live television cameras out of the room. Reporters were told 'absolutely no questions'. The audio from this can be found through google searches ... it was handled poorly by the University as well.

Why did they even bother having the press conference? One Knoxville station sent a reporter to California for the presser at Kiffin's welcoming party.

At the same time, Orgeron was calling recruits, not just the ones already enrolled ... but recruits that were still in high school. This is clearly a recruiting violation because the coaches were in the middle of the dead period. That is indefensible, not to mention classless.

The fans at UT honestly felt like they were lied to all along. Kiffin was a car salesman. While many of us realized this, apparently not everyone received the memo lol. By the time this settles, the fans will come to realize that their own University pulled the wool over their eyes as much as the coaching staff did.

In my eyes, it was the timing that really screwed everything ... a honorable man would have really hated to turn it down, but would have. While it is true that other coaches in the SEC have bailed on their teams, how many did it this close to signing day?

I realize that Kiffin has much to learn at age 34, but apparently Al Davis' words were true.

I really feel for Tyler Bray. His entire family moved to West Knoxville from California to enroll early. It doesn't matter if the players were on the campus one minute, one hour, or one day ... they signed to play for the school ... if the players are miserable, then they really should have thought about the decision making process, and can transfer. It may suck, but that is life. Too bad today's kids have lost sight of who they are playing for as far too many are playing for the name on the back of the jersey rather than the logo on the helmet.

That alone tells me what I need to know about the recruitment process at that University under the previous coaching staff.

Want to hear the funny thing? I am not even a UT fan ... just ask my friends

To Jim Dunmyer:

Are you serious? I don't know how you could write such a long comment in defense of that lying, cheating, unproven schmuck.

If Kiffin fails at USC his career is over? Really? It wasn't over when he sucked it up in Oakland, and it didn't end after an unsuccessful year in Knoxville. I can't believe a guy with his losing record continues to get good jobs; he's the least proven guy out there!

I'm not a Tennessee fan. I'm a Bama fan (and grad), so I don't mind them getting screwed over, but that doesn't mean Kiffin isn't a d-bag and classless. The guy is a turd. And a cheater! He was the recruiting coordinator at USC when Bush was brought in and now USC is about to pay the piper for lack of institutional control (Bush, McKnight, Mayo). He has half as many minor NCAA violations as he does head coaching wins (6 violations, 12 wins). The guy is a cheater and I can't wait to see the NCAA take it to the trojans and Kiffin get pounded by the likes of Oregon State and Arizona for two years, then Garrett will be forced to run him off, but he'll probably take over the Colts (or something equally mindboggling).

And as for you knowing that the rest of the country loves football as much as the south, that is BS. I've lived all over the South, Midwest, New England and now in LA. Only Texas likes their football in the same way as the South. Most likely because of a historical lack of pro teams in the South, but at any rate, having lived alongside LA's USC fans, Boston's BC fans and Cincinnati's Ohio State fans, they don't have a tenth of the passion for college football as your average SEC fan...

Pull Kiffin's dong out of your mouth and see things as they are. He's a liar and a cheat, and UT got screwed by taking a chance on this kid who has failed at each head coaching job and left both programs in worse shape than before he arrived. He's toxic. USC deserves him though. Fight On!