"In January 2017, just days before Alabama played Clemson for the national championship, Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban essentially fired his offensive coordinator, Lane Kiffin. Officially it was because Kiffin's acceptance of the Florida Atlantic head coaching job had caused "distractions." Really though, Kiffin had so worn out his welcome that Saban, a man who despises any disruption to pretty much anything, was willing to dump his playcaller before the biggest game of the season."
"And now that very same Lane Kiffin, with his No. 7 Ole Miss Rebels hurtling toward the College Football Playoff and rival SEC programs frothing to send a Brink's truck to Oxford to lure him away, might be the belle of college football. Back then, though, Kiffin was mostly its court jester -- talented but immature, brilliant but self-destructive. He seemed destined to fade away in Conference USA purgatory."
In January 2017, Nick Saban removed Lane Kiffin as Alabama's offensive coordinator days before the national championship. Officially the move responded to Kiffin's acceptance of the Florida Atlantic head job and resulting "distractions." Kiffin's behavior had so tested Saban's tolerance that the coach dismissed his playcaller before the season's biggest game. Years later, Kiffin leads No. 7 Ole Miss toward the College Football Playoff while rival SEC programs attempt to recruit him. Kiffin's career arc includes an early Raiders head-coaching job at 31, a short, controversial tenure at Tennessee, and a fired-at-the-airport exit from USC.
Read at ESPN.com
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