Lane Kiffin and the Ole Miss Rebels were one of the teams on the outside looking in for the College Football Playoff. The committee decided to favor the Indiana Hoosiers and SMU Mustangs and not the pool of three-loss SEC teams. The debate raged on for weeks but was reignited during the first two games. Notre Dame smoked Indiana with the final score not showing how dominant the Fighting Irish were. SMU got dominated by the Penn State defense in a game that was over at halftime. Kiffin has spent the past 12 hours on social media, letting the committee know how he feels about these games.
Lane Kiffin Slams College Football Playoff Games
Last night, during the Notre Dame-Indiana game, Lane Kiffin posted on X expressing his displeasure for the game he was watching. “Really exciting competitive game,” the head coach posted, tagging the official College Football Playoff account. The Rebels head coach was at it again this morning during the SMU vs. Penn State game. “Way to keep us on the edge of our seats Committee…Riveting,” he posted about halfway through the first game of the day.
Kiffin isn’t the only person who has expressed displeasure with the quality of games. These are supposed to be the best teams, and many question whether a three-loss SEC team would have made the games more competitive. Unlike a regular season week, there aren’t tons of other games to flip to. If you want to watch college football, you are stuck with a blowout.
Others Clap Back
The response to the posts by Lane Kiffin has been a mixed bag. Many have been quick to support the message, but others point out that if Ole Miss wanted to be in, they simply needed to play better during the regular season. They lost to Kentucky, whose only conference win was against the Rebels. A loss to LSU in overtime isn’t a bad loss, but a late loss to the Florida Gators likely sealed the fate of the team for the College Football Playoff.
If they had one less loss, they might have snuck in. This goes for Alabama, South Carolina, and Miami, other bubble teams who were left out in favor of Indiana and SMU. After these games, there will be much discussion about what teams should have to do in order to get a playoff bid beyond this season.
Final Thoughts
With conferences becoming inflated, this will happen from time to time. Indiana didn’t play the top teams in their conference this year. There were some SEC teams, like Texas, who also avoided many of the top teams. Blowouts also happen in the College Football Playoff. Twice, teams have been shut out in the semifinals, and lopsided victories happen all the time. Lane Kiffin is among the many college football fans calling for change in the long run. Will these two games affect how the committee evaluates teams?
