Lane Kiffin remains so reviled in Tennessee that his negative image is being used in a state political race to try to discredit incumbent state senator Gloria Johnson, who is running against challenger Eddie Smith.
A direct mail ad being sent by Smith's campaign states "Lane Kiffin and Gloria Johnson both made a lot of promises to the people of Tennessee ... And like Lane Kiffin, Gloria Johnson is all talk."
SEC REPORT
SEC TOP TO BOTTOM
RANK;PREVIOUS;ARROW;RECORD;COMMENT
1;(1);same;Mississippi State;6-0;First game as No. 1 vs Kentucky on CBS
2;(2);same;Ole Miss;7-0;Trying to stay unbeaten with visit to LSU
3;(4);up;Alabama;6-1;Regains swagger pounding Aggies 59-0
4;(3);down;Auburn;5-1;Gus takes on Spurrier
5;(5);same;Georgia;6-1;Enjoys first trip to Little Rock
6;(7);up;LSU;5-2;Back in SEC West vs. Ole Miss after JV victory over UK
7;(13);up;Missouri;5-2;Many happy returns to beat Florida
8;(6);down;Texas A&M;5-3;How did Hogs lose to these guys?
9;(9);same;Arkansas;3-4;Glad to get break from SEC West with UAB visit
10;(8);down;Kentucky;5-2;Welcomes No. 1 Mississippi State to Lexington
11;(11);same;South Carolina;4-3;Battle of the visors
12;(12);same;Tennessee;3-4;Ready to welcome Kiffin back to campus
13;(10);down;Florida;3-3;Muschamp probably will survive to end of season
14;(14);same;Vanderbilt;2-5;Will try to put damper on Mizzou’s homecoming
BY THE NUMBERS
0 Rushing yards for Tennessee in Ole Miss’ 34-3 victory
45-4 LSU’s record in night games at home under Coach Les Miles.
12 Turnovers by Florida QB Jeff Driskel in the past 14 quarters.
36-11 Average final score for Alabama during its 7-game winning streak over Tennessee.
OVERHEARD
“Fire Muschamp!”
— Chant by Florida fans who hung around for the end of Missouri’s 42-13 victory over the Gators at The Swamp
“However you cut it, that performance was unacceptable and embarrassing.”
— Texas A&M Coach Kevin Sumlin after Alabama beat the Aggies 59-0
“I’m glad we’re not playing the Mississippis this year.”
— South Carolina Coach Steve Spurrier on not having No. 1 Mississippi State or No. 3 Ole Miss on the schedule
GAME OF THE WEEK
No. 3 Ole Miss at No. 24 LSU
6:20 p.m. Saturday, ESPN
For the first time since 1961, Ole Miss is the higher-ranked team when the Rebels and LSU both are in the national polls. T
he Rebels are looking to stay in the national title hunt, while LSU tries to win its first game against an SEC West rival after losing to Mississippi State and at Auburn.
Ole Miss leads the nation in scoring defense — holding opponents to 10.6 points per game — while LSU is struggling to find a consistent starting quarterback between Anthony Jennings and Brandon Harris.
Johnson, a Tennessee graduate, has countered the Kiffin ad by gaining an endorsement from Johnny Majors, the former Vols star player and their coach from 1977-1992.
Kiffin was Tennessee's coach for one season in 2009. He then opted for the Southern California job after a 7-6 season with the Vols.
Tennessee is 7-28 since Kiffin's departure, adding fuel to the fans' feelings about him.
Kiffin is now Alabama's offensive coordinator and will make his return to Knoxville, Tenn., on Saturday for the Crimson's Tide game against the Vols. He may want to wear a hard hat instead of a cap considering the welcome he'll receive from fans in Neyland Stadium.
Alabama Coach Nick Saban, the former LSU coach who returned to the SEC with Alabama after a two-year stint with the Miami Dolphins, can fill Kiffin in on what it's like to be hated by fans who used to cheer for you.
Alabama beat LSU 27-21 in overtime in 2008 during Saban's return to Baton Rouge for the first time, but he still remembers the hostile reception.
"It was very negative," Saban said this week. "Getting hung in effigy. Burned at the stake. I mean, just about everything that could happen, happened, but the way I tried to manage that with the players is to let them know that was going to happen in advance and not to be affected by it.
"I would hope that is our approach to do the same thing in this game."
Alabama assistants rarely do interviews during the season, but Kiffin was asked about the Tennessee game when he held a 15-minute news conference in August when practice started.
"As far as going back to Tennessee, we had a great year there," Kiffin said. "The people were phenomenal. I really loved being there. It was just a unique situation that came about. You can't look back. I don't live that way."
Kiffin was fired as Southern California's coach last season after four games and with an overall record of 28-15.
Clam up
Mississippi State Coach Dan Mullen had a strong response in an interview with Head to Head Radio in Mississippi last week when asked about the websites some Florida fans have launched to have him replace Will Muschamp as Florida's coach.
Muschamp's Gators are 3-10 in their past 13 games and 3-3 overall after last week's 42-13 home loss to Missouri.
"It's really an insult to coaches and to players at institutions," Mullen said. "Whether they're putting websites out to hire you or fire you ... I don't think that does any good for anybody.
"At the end of every season there are coaching changes, but people put so much in. You're so committed -- yourself, your family, your team, everybody's so committed -- that I think it's insulting to the job everybody does.
"People can have their opinions and call in on shows, but to take it that far, I don't think it's good for anybody on either side of the fence."
Mullen, who was Florida's offensive coordinator from 2005-2009 before taking the Mississippi State job, said he can recall some fans who wanted him fired.
"I know there was a website here at Mississippi State to fire Dan Mullen last year," he said. "Now there's probably one to keep me here."
Mullen said Muschamp is a good football coach and that he deserves respect from fans, not ridicule.
"Everybody wants to win," Mullen said. "Everybody's giving their best effort out there. Fans are entitled to their opinion ... but they need to know I've never met a coach that's not going to give everything he has."
Been a long time
South Carolina will try to beat Auburn for the first time in 82 years when the teams play Saturday.
The Gamecocks' only victory against Alabama came in 1933, when South Carolina won 16-14 in Birmingham, Ala.
"That's crazy," South Carolina quarterback Dylan Thompson told The State newspaper. "That's a long time ago. I don't think any of us were alive then."
Auburn leads the series 9-1-1, including six victories since South Carolina joined the SEC.
Whitehead back
Auburn senior safety Jermaine Whitehead has been reinstated to the team after missing the previous three games for undisclosed disciplinary reasons.
White was suspended for having a verbal altercation with an assistant coach in practice prior to the Tigers' game at Kansas State, according to a report by AuburnUndercover.com, but Coach Gus Malzahn hasn't commented on a specific reason for the suspension.
Malzahn said while Whitehead has returned to practice, it's not certain if he'll play against South Carolina.
"I don't have a timetable on it, but we'll see how that goes," Malzahn said.
Waiting game
Don't expect Florida Athletic Director Jeremy Foley to have a quick trigger on firing Coach Will Muschamp, but Foley felt strongly enough after Missouri's 42-13 homecoming victory at The Swamp that he issued a statement.
"At the beginning of the season, we said we would evaluate the season as it plays out," Foley said. "We will continue to do so. Our sole focus right now is supporting our coaching staff and players as they prepare for Georgia."
Florida and Georgia have open dates this weekend before facing off Nov. 1 in Jacksonville.
Sports on 10/23/2014