Lane Kiffin cracks back at ESPN’s Michael Wilbon, who called him ‘a clown’
Michael Wilbon did not attend USC.
The ESPN commentator is not a Tennessee alum either.
And as a Chicago native, he probably does not root for the Raiders.
But Wilbon has something in common with many members of those fan bases.
He thinks Lane Kiffin is a clown.
Tuesday on “Pardon the Interuption,” Wilbon went on a rant about the former Raiders/Volunteers/Trojans and current Mississippi coach after he and co-host Tony Kornheiser responded to a question about the No. 12 Rebels’ game at No. 1 Alabama game Saturday afternoon.
N.C. State’s upset of No. 9 Clemson and Baylor’s win over No. 14 Iowa State would have deeper meaning if the College Football Playoff pool were expanded to `12 teams.
Asked which team would be a better winner for the college football season, Kornheiser said, “It’s Ole Miss because of Lane Kiffin, because he’s a former assistant to Nick Saban. Nick Saban at the moment is 23-0 against his former assistants, winning each game by an average of 25 points.”
Wilbon did not hold back in his response.
“You started this by saying the answer is Mississippi because of Lane Kiffin. The answer is Alabama, because of Lane Kiffin,” Wilbon said. “There’s nothing to be proud of if you’re college football or any other sport with Lane Kiffin. Lane Kiffin’s a clown. Lane Kiffin has been an embarrassment at multiple stops. ... Lane Kiffin equals embarrassment at some point wherever he is.”
Kiffin was an assistant at USC when he became a surprise pick as the then-Oakland Raiders head coach in 2007. He was fired four games into his second season after compiling an overall record of 5-15. He then became the head coach at Tennessee but angered much of the fan base by leaving after one season to take the head coaching job at USC. He was fired from that job five games into his fourth season.
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Kiffin revived his career with stints as an assistant to Saban in Alabama and as head coach at Florida Atlantic before landing the Ole Miss gig before last season. He fired back at Wilbon on Twitter.
“So [angry emoji]. Geez. I’ll [pray emoji] for you,” Kiffin wrote on a retweet of Wilbon’s rant. “Life is [too] short to be so angry.”
Kiffin had more to say this morning, adding a response to his first tweet.
“And way to go out on a [limb] and pick the number one team in the country at home who is a huge favorite,” Kiffin wrote. “How long did you watch film to come up with that surprise pick??? Really News worthy captain obvious.”
He also retweeted a quote of Saban singing his praises.
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