ICYMI: Lane Kiffin Makes Nick Saban Jokes

Ok, context here. We've often gone on about the alleged constant seriousness of Alabama football coach Nick Saban.

And well, after the brief roasting by his highly publicized assistant coach Lane Kiffin at Tuesday nights Broyles Award ceremony. Let's hope Saban has a good laugh.

Kiffin, a finalist for the award, given to College Football's top assistant coach cracked a few jokes about his boss's lack of height and a few other things to the assembled crowd of mostly football folks.

Here's the video...(jokes start about 2:50 in)

Tennessee Gets Silly About the Return of Lane Kiffin

Oh boy, we're laughing hysterically and yet and the same time shaking our heads at the reactions of people in at least the eastern part of Tennessee as they prepare to greet their former head coach and current Alabama assistant Lane Kiffin.

The Tennessee Vols and the 4th ranked Alabama Crimson Tide square off Saturday in a game that the Tide likely will win...and win handily.

But the buildup to this SEC matchup has been nothing short of hilarious.

How much does #Tennessee dislike Lane Kiffin? Enough that he is used in a political hit piece. [photo] #Election2014 pic.twitter.com/36h2fumDLY
— Jarryd Gonzales (@jarrydgonzales) October 20, 2014

This isn't made up. A political action committee (Political Hit Squad) came up with this ad to attack State Representative Gloria Johnson.

And there is more...

This story by Knoxville TV station WBIR is about Knoxville barber Rusty Manis who was shorted $14 haircut by Coach Kiffykins who came in to get coiffed and said he forgot his wallet.

He never returned to pay the bill.

Check out the dramatic (funny) retelling of that story (well produced)---

Kiffin's Krimson Korner: Comedian Spoofs Coach Kiffykins....

((ht: tosh.cc.com))

Oh wow...

This is a bit crude if you aren't open minded with your humor, but for most of us, this is absolutely hilarious.

Check out this skit by comedian Daniel Tosh on his show Tosh.O.

Tosh is a big sports fan and it appears he knows an awful lot about Lane Kiffin, Nick Saban and Alabama.

The language may be a bit salty for some, but for the rest of us this skit is pure awesomeness.

As most of us who follow college football know, Kiffin isn't exactly the most beloved character in College Football. And if you watch this to the end, we're betting on seeing the requested sign this coming Saturday....

Behold--

Tosh.0
Get More: Comedy Central

Signs of the Apocalypse: Nick Saban Dances; Lane Kiffin Sings

((ht: twitter/@alexevans))

So, you ready to see something you can't unsee?

You're latest (Sunday night) Internet craze?

Yes, you are not imagining things, it's none other than Alabama head coach Nick Saban in the red sportcoat doing the electric slide.



Not to be outdone, newly hired offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin got in on the musical fun. Alabama recruit Donetris Scarborough tells BamaOnLine.com that Kiffin, at the same party, held for recruits and their family, got in on some Karaoke fun, singing "Sweet Home Alabama".

Read the whole story from BamaOnLine.com RIGHT HERE

Unfortunately...or fortunately, depending on your taste, video of the performance has yet to surface.

Strange Bedfellows: Lane Kiffin is the New O.C at Alabama

Wha...what?

Yes, you read the headline correctly, former USC, Tennessee and Oakland Raiders head coach Lane Kiffin is either a cat with 9 lives or has got some sort of blackmail photos.

Why do we say this?

Because the Mega Powers have now united---Lane Kiffin is joining the staff of Nick Saban...as the offensive coordinator for the Alabama Crimson Tide.



We are pretty sure Clay Travis of Outkick The Coverage and pretty much any hardcore SEC Football fan in existence are still doubled over in laughter on this hire for more reasons than we can count.

Kiffin takes the place of Doug Nussmeier who left to take the same job at Michigan.

The adventures/chronicles of the coach we all call "Kiffykins" has been well documented here and on many other blogs. From his strange departure in Tennessee and string of NCAA questions left in his wake to his non-success at USC where he somehow got fired on the way HOME from a loss, on a bus, on the tarmac at an airport, pretty much all of us and probably all of you can't help but laugh about this.

Apparently Kiffin struck up some sort of friendship with Saban, who had him in to consult during the downtime between the end of the regular season and the Sugar Bowl game. We're assuming that may/or may not have impacted Nussmeier's decision to leave.

According to ESPN.com, Kiffin will sign a 3-year deal.

Our question: When Saban steps down, and he's already started hinting that he's thinking of a time where he isn't coaching, does Kiffykins stand a chance of being the coach-in-training?

Coach "O" Brings Fun Back To USC Football, And A Win Over Arizona 38-31

[HT: Los Angeles Times]

Could it be it's fun to play football again at Southern California?

It sure seems that way with USC's 38-31 win over Arizona.



Interim head coach Ed Orgeron has brought is Cajun enthusiasm to L.A. and it seems to be catching on.  You can chalk that up to what a difference a coaching change can make.

There were Trojans with "Coach 'O'" painted on their chest and it seemed USC was playing with more passion than before athletic director Pat Haden made the move to change coaches.

“Coach O was awesome,” Haden said to the Los Angeles Times. “An entirely different energy for our team.

“It was just fun watching our kids having a blast. The game is supposed to be a game of joy and they played with joy tonight.”

"I had a blast," Orgeron said.  “I think I woke up happy for the first time in my life [Thursday] morning, besides the day I married my wife and had my kids.

“I’m not a happy guy, but today I was happy. Just a feeling of happiness of being able to represent USC.”

Leave it to Arizona head coach Rich Rodriquez to bring up USC's former head coach.

"And give Lane Kiffin credit. Lane recruited those guys and their talented and they played hard." Rodriquez said.

They played hard for Coach "O".

Southern California may have found another star receiver in Nelson Agholor who caught seven passes for 161 yards and a touchdown.  Agholor had to step up against Arizona with All-American receiver Marqise Lee out with a knee injury.

USC quarterback Cody Kessler was an efficient 15-30 passing for 297 yards and a touchdown and no interceptions.

“It was awesome,” Kessler said to the Los Angeles Times as he left the field. “It was great to come out and make a statement. I think people are excited about USC football again.”

Notre Dame is next up for the Trojans.

Lane Kiffin Canned As USC Head Coach--UPDATED WITH DETAILS

USC athletic director Pat Haden has seen enough of Lane Kiffin as the head coach of the Trojans.

USC athletics sent out this tweet:

Breaking news: Lane Kiffin has been relieved of his duties as USC's head football coach per AD Pat Haden.
— USC Trojans (@USC_Athletics) September 29, 2013

 Haden broke the news to Kiffin when the charter arrived back to Los Angeles after USC was pummeled by Arizona State 62-41. The Trojans are 3-2 this season.

Kiffin's overall record in 4 seasons was 28-15. He got a lot of flack at the end of the 2012 season when he essentially fired his father, defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin.

((Update--Per @InsideUSC, writer Scott Wolf of the Los Angeles Daily News, it appears the firing happened when the team plane landed early Sunday morning at LAX. He was pulled off the team bus and notified--

Pat Haden, J.K. McKay, Steve Lopes, Mark Jackson (#USC administrators) met with Lane Kiffin at LAX parking lot to dismiss him
— InsideUSC (@InsideUSC) September 29, 2013

USC announced that athletic director Pat Haden will hold a Sunday afternoon press conference where it's expected he'll announce an interim coach and the school's plans moving forward.

((UPDATE 11:45am---ESPN reports former Ole Miss coach and current USC assistant Ed Orgeron will take over the team for the rest of the 2013 season))

Haden had supported Kiffin the past few weeks when others were calling for his head.  While Southern California was off to a 3-1 start heading into Saturday nights game against Arizona State those wins were very uninspiring.

Losing to Washington State in the L.A. Coliseum 10-7 in the second week of the season was inexcusable to Trojan fans.  Barely defeating Utah State 17-14 at home drove those fans crazy.

Haden stuck with Kiffin.

Then Saturday night during USC's first road game in hostile territory the Trojans rolled over and died.



USC's defense, which was one of the nations best, gave up 612 yards of total offense to Arizona State.  To add insult to injury the Sun Devils put up 62 points on the Trojans.

At times the Trojans looked uninterested and showed no enthusiasm.  Lane Kiffin looked like he was staring into space, almost totally lost.

Haden had seen enough.  The USC brand is way too important to college football.  It's the gold standard on the west coast.

God forbid that school in the powder blue, UCLA, should over take USC in L.A.

The move was made.  Lane Kiffin is unemployed before the season ended.

Now the question is what kind of rebuilding job is at stake for USC to maintain their brand in college football and out west.

Some heavy lifting is needed.

Washington St beats USC: Is Coach Kiffykins Toast?

Those of us on the East Coast undoubtedly did not stay awake to watch this game. Why would you?

Washington State pulled off what many feel may have been an upset, but maybe it wasn't. The Cougars took down apparently over-rated USC 10-7, late Saturday night at the Los Angeles Coliseum.

As usual, most of the generic Sportswriting masses picked USC to be a "Top 25" team. Under coach Lane Kiffin, it appears they are not. The USC fans who remained to see their team lose their first home opener since 1997, serenaded their head coach with "Fire Kiffin" chants.

From Instagram:



Ironically, Washington State, a supposed offensive power under the mad genius coach Mike Leach didn't score an offensive touchdown, they got a field goal and a 70-yard TD on an interception return.

Yes, the game was that ugly.

Highlights from Fox Sports:

Lane Kiffin as Your Ice Cream Man

((ht: cbssports.com))

Oh, this is rich....and not just in an ice cream kind of way.

Check out this video of USC head football coach Lane Kiffin and star wide receiver Marqise Lee paying a visit to the USC Marching Trojan band as they wind up their practice week.

Kiffin is driving the ice cream truck, Lee the chief server.

And yes, there's a spate of wacky college football activity going on this week as teams wind up practice and gear up for next week's season.



For Coach Kiffykins sake, he needs to hope this season goes better than the last one did....

Yes, we will say it---Or he might just end up having shown off his new career path.

Hahaha! Oh, we are so funny.

OSG High: USC Offers Kid From 8th Grade

((HT: WeAreSC.com/Angulo))

When LSU offered Dylan Moses from Baton Rouge-University Lab, everyone was up in arms over offering an 8th grader.

Not that, in the grand scheme of things, that offers mean anything until this moment...


Now, USC has offered Class of 2017 receiver Nathan Tilford from Upland, California who got an offer at a Trojans' skills camp.

Commence over-hype now...

Tilford is projected as one of the top incoming high school freshmen in Southern California... for whatever that's worth...

USC has gotten into the underclassmen business going seven times into the 2015 class and once into the 2016 class...

Report: University of Tennessee Drowning in Debt

((ht: sportsbuisnessdaily.com))

Who says that all college sports teams are responsible with their money? For that matter the University of Tennessee may personify why they are all constantly seeking fatter and fatter TV deals.

In today's Sports Business Journal, there's a report saying the state run "Flagship" university is over $200 million in debt.

Yes, $200 million.

The University apparently has a $99.5 million dollar athletic budget and $13 million of it goes towards their $21 million a year in debt payment.

Hmmmm....we're guessing they struggled with accounting over there in Knoxville.

Read the entire SBJ as told by Michael Smith RIGHT HERE

The list of reasons for this is pretty damn long. From former Athletic Director Mike Hamilton's penchant for hiring coaches like Lane Kiffin, Derek Dooley and others whom they still owe money to, to an extravagant spending spree on upgraded facilities like a $50 million athletic center, the Vols have been apparently dishing it out much better than they've been taking it.

It doesn't help that the underperforming football team is hemorrhaging fans at 109,000 plus seat Neyland Stadium, which also has been recently remodeled.

The school is counting heavily on the SEC football deal to be updated in the very near future. And yeah, that will probably help. But if you really think that college football is a "Well-Run" business, you'd be wrong.

Part of the whole realignment issue is schools that have overspent trying to pay off their debts. Schools like Maryland who are also have major debt issues moved from a charter ACC Membership to the Big 10 for one reason and one reason only: More TV Money to pay off their debts.

Somewhere, somehow this has to stop. We don't know how, but it does. When the financial system is set up to benefit a few schools, it kills the others struggling to keep up. It's created a sharper line of have's and have nots. And the have nots want nothing more than to play with the big boys. The problem is, if they do it haphazardly like, say, Tennessee, they end up with mountains of debt.

Maybe it will take a "Big Name" football team shutting down due to bankruptcy. Maybe it will take a bank foreclosing on a palatial "Athletic Building" to wake people up. Though more than likely, nothing will change. Nothing will change because there is far too much TV money involved and as long as ESPN keeps paying major conferences billions of dollars for TV deals, everything will stay as it is now.

The Dirty Dozen and Bottom of the Barrel: USC got beat by a Tree

Well, hopefully you are still with us as we enter week number 3. Because this is college football, there are always upsets, and last week proved that when Stanford beat USC.

Now mind you Stanford didn't have Andrew Luck or any of the other graduates who went on to play in the NFL or running corporations, but they still won.

We think it's because ESPN picked USC to win it all. Or maybe it was USC coach Lane Kiffin and his unbelievably tight sphincter.

We have to run his presser from yesterday again...because it was just too friggin funny.



No pressure there Coach Kiffykins, no pressure.



So.

With that being said, we didn't have a perfect week last week, but we didn't do poorly either. Let's go back and take a look:

Last Week's Picks: 11-4. Not bad, but we can do better. Overall: 25-5...now...doesn't that sound better?

In this weeks clip, we go to the execution scene, something we are pretty sure the L.A. Media would like to do to Kiffykins...or Kiffykins would like to do to them:



And now, in the words of the Immortal Casey Kasem it's--"On with the Countdown"

The Dirty Dozen:

1) LSU 3-0. We're sticking with them even though they aren't the popular choice now. And yeah, there are a few roadblocks. But they really haven't been pushed. Of course they haven't played anyone either.
(This Week: at Auburn. Our Pick: LSU 33, Auburn 21)

2) Alabama 3-0. We won't put them at #1 mostly because we like being anti-establishment, and the Fighting Saban's certainly are the popular pick. They too haven't really been pushed and all things considered, killing Arkansas wasn't much of a surprise. (This Week: vs. Florida Atlantic. Our Pick: Alabama 43, FAU 10)

3)Florida State 3-0. So far, so good, they've been about as close to perfect as you can be. They've only given up 3 points...all year. Of course it's all been vs. Cupcakes. We actually think they have a shot, but we also know much like the Big 10, every ACC team chokes at least once per season. (This Week: vs. Clemson. Our Pick: FSU 27, Clemson 23)

4) Oregon 3-0. Yeah, I know, we don't love them because they resemble a track team. And that is why. Most SEC teams can run with them and are WAY more physical. Track meet football is popular out west, and honestly, they are very good at it. (This Week: vs. Arizona. Our Pick: Oregon 37, Arizona 20)

5) West Virginia 2-0. Geno Smith, Geno Smith, Geno Smith. That's all you really need to say here. They are awfully good and don't have a tough schedule. Maybe a longshot, but I'd watch out for these guys. (This Week: vs. Maryland. Our Pick: Geno Smith 43, Maryland 12)

6) Georgia 3-0. This is as good a starting unit as there is. But are they BCS material? Depth is an issue, though most of the suspended defense is returning. Aaron Murray is legit and so are the freshman RB's.  The only worry is they'll blow a game they shouldn't. (This Week: vs. Vanderbilt. Our Pick: UGA 37, Vandy 23)

7) South Carolina 3-0. Well, we were right in week one about Connor Shaw, but that doesn't seem to be an issue, Dylan Thompson has been impressive to say the least. They'll stick around but everything points to Oct. 6th, when Georgia comes to town. (This Week: vs. Missouri. Our Pick: S.Carolina 31, Mizzou 27)

8) Oklahoma 2-0. They get a lot of love, but the question is: Have they earned it? The jury is still out. There's plenty of talent here, but nobody seems real excited about them. Including us. (This Week: vs. Kansas State. Our Pick: Oklahoma 41, K-State 33)

9) Stanford 3-0. Hmmm. Maybe they don't miss Andrew Luck. Or maybe the defense is just that good that it doesn't matter. Either way they are a surprise and get this on the basis of making Coach Kiffykins look really bad. (This Week: BYE)

10) Clemson 3-0. By virtue of not allowing Notre Dame to make this list YET, Clemson gets the nod. And they get Sammy Watkins back. But they have a tough test this week. The advantage is, they've been tested--sort of--vs. Auburn. (This Week: at FSU. Our Pick: See #3)

11) Texas 3-0. Proof that big schools get big rankings because they are big. They are much improved, but they aren't THAT much improved. David Ash has secured the starting QB job and the depth has been solid. (This Week: BYE)

12) USC 2-1. Ha! Even though we didn't pick it last week, we told you they'd lose a game they shouldn't. That's why we NEVER buy the hype on any team outside the SEC and sometimes not them either. Too many pundits who don't know of what they speak. (This Week: vs. California. Our Pick: USC 37, Cal. 21)

The Bottom of the Barrel: 

5) Houston 0-3. There are a few coaches out there saying this is Karma for the Case Keenum years when they ran up scores on people. And maybe they are right. When you can't run, can't score and can't stop anybody, you end up here. (This Week: BYE)

4) Idaho 0-3. So...there's this team in Idaho. And they play in the WAC and they aren't very good. And they avg. 39 yards rushing per game and 10 points. At least they got paid for letting LSU slaughter them. (This Week: vs. Wyoming. Our Pick: UPSET! Idaho 10, Wyoming 9)

3) Memphis 0-3. They move up ONLY by virtue of the two teams behind them being atrocious. We know why they play football here, but that still doesn't make it right. They've been really bad for a really long time and that isn't going to change. (This Week: at Duke. Our Pick: Duke 31, Memphis 17)

2) Colorado 0-3. Wah! Wah! Wah!. Where have you gone Kordell Stewart and Eric Bienemy? Words cannot describe how bad this team is. And they PAC 12 was clamoring for them? Really? Maybe it was to keep the academic and graduation rate up? It certainly couldn't be for football. (This Week: at Washington St. Our Pick: Wash. St. 49, Colorado 17)

1) UMass 0-3. Colorado is pushing them, but we are quite sure it gets no worse than this. They are the worst in D-1 in almost every category. We didn't think that was possible. Yeeeesh. We aren't even sure what to say here, they average 6 points a game. (This Week: Miami (OH) 41, UMass 5)

Lane Kiffin with shortest press conference ever

Well, not really, but it wasn't too far from that.

Coach Kiffykins, a perennial favorite of Sports Bloggers world wide kind of outdid himself Wednesday morning.

Kiffin took questions following practice. Ok..well, actually he only took one of them before looking away and leaving.



Total Presser Time :28 seconds.

He already had endeared himself to the L.A media last week after banning L.A Times reporter Scott Wolf from practices and games for reporting that USC kicker Andre Heidari had knee surgery and was out for at least 3 weeks.

USC was appalled and claimed Wolf had violated their rules of not reporting injuries. Kiffykins eventually relented and Wolf was reinstated, but his team was...a bit choked up.

The Trojans summarily went out and got beat by a Tree. Stanford took down the then #2 Trojans 21-14 Saturday night.

It appears, at least by this clip, Kiffy was peeved at a question about someone's health during this mornings presser. And he REALLY needs to lighten up.

Perhaps his tight sphincter explains his team being so tight, but then again, we got to see this act in the SEC. Kiffy making no friends in Tennessee or the SEC after laying waste to the Volunteers program.

Remember this SEC and Vols fans?



Thought so....

TWTW: Bee-Cee-Ess In Upheaval... Oke State, Clemson, Baylor, Oregon

Just when you thought everything would calm down for a weekend...

Nah...

Where to start...???

With Oke State already losing, that left things in the hands of Oregon...
And a lot of people were just rooting against Lane Kiffin and that toque he sported last night that made him look like he just celebrated his bar mitzvah...

USC went out to a big lead and held on as Alejandro Maldonado hooked a field goal attempt as time expired...
Nick Krupke goes into detail...
((HT: KVAL-TV))


The loss snaps a 21-game winning streak for the Ducks (now 9-2, 7-1 Pac-12) at Autzen Stadium, which was the longest in the nation. It also stopped Oregon's winning streak in conference games at 19.

NEXT!!!

If RG3 isn't back in the college football MVP trophy chase, we don't know what will make it happen...

479 yards passing, which broke his own single-game school record, and 551 total yards of offense in a completely ridiculous performance for a 45-38 win over Oklahoma.

Jenni Carlson and Travis Haney discuss...
((HT: newsok.com))


The ACC thought they had something in Clemson, but Dabo threw in a clunker of biblical proportions getting blown out by NC State...

The win for the Wolfpack ended Clemson's seven-game winning streak in the series, which dated back to 2004. (Thanks ACC Digital Network)



"I was really disappointed in the way we played," Swinney said. "There are no excuses. They wanted it more than we did. It is that simple.

"In the game of football, when you do the things that we did, you are going to get beat."

Like giving up 27 in the second...???
((HT: WSPA-TV))


And the HQ is throwing this one in because we can...
Apparently, Eff-Ess-Yew head coach Jimbo Fisher can't locate his offense...
Up early against Virginia, the Seminoles blew the lead and lost to Virginia 14-13 as a last-second field goal attempt went wide... (Thanks ACC Digital Network)



Gee... that NEVER happens to Florida State...
Here's some Mike London post...
((HT: Newsplex.com))

Pearl, Assistants Get Show-Cause, Vols Get Failure To Monitor

The hammer has officially dropped on former Tennessee men's basketball coach Bruce Pearl- three years of a show-cause penalty while his assistants during his tenure each get one-year penalties.

Tony Jones, Steve Forbes and Jason Shay all got ones according to the full report released by the Committee On Infractions. The failure to monitor the program charge translates into a two-year probation through 2013.

Pearl violated the bump rule and failed to disclose the bump during an investigation.

The football team also had 12 violations- all minor, but still significant- during Lane Kiffin's one year in Knoxville before he was almost burned at the stake by Vols fans who congregated outside the Athletics office during his resignation presser.

The NCAA was perturbed, but didn't do anything else to the football program or Cuonzo Martin's basketball program.

The whole report is hyah, thanks to our friends at WATE-TV...

Kiffin released a statement and sayeth quote...

"I'm very grateful to the NCAA, the committee on infractions and its chairman, Dennis Thomas, for a very fair and thorough process. I'm also very grateful that we were able to accurately and fairly present the facts in our case and that no action was taken against us. I'm pleased that the NCAA based its decision on the facts and not on perception. I'm also very grateful that the Tennessee football program was cleared of any wrongdoing. As I have said before, we always have been committed to following NCAA rules and bylaws both at Tennessee and now at USC, and we always will be. Now that this has reached its conclusion, I am looking forward to continuing to prepare our team for the upcoming season."

More when we know more...

PM UPDATE: We know more...
Steve Phillips at WBIR-TV has the lead in team coverage...