Lane Kiffin Found Peace At Ole Miss. But Right Or Wrong, He's Guided By The Football Business | Trey Wallace

There is no doubt that the City of Oxford and the people at Ole Miss have changed his life. But, Lane Kiffin is in the college football business, which we're all getting a refresher on as he mulls three different scenarios that will still make him look bad from a perception standpoint. 

There's going to be an outcome that will have him playing the villain in at least two states. Maybe three, even if he were to stick around. 

Should he take an interview with Florida athletics director Scott Stricklin? Should he entertain the thought of leaving Ole Miss for a different school that would present another challenge in his career? What about the outside perception of the decision? 

What if he ended up bolting for the NFL? 

I would imagine these have been the questions running through the mind of Lane Kiffin over the past month, while at the same time doing his job as the Rebels head coach to have them on the cusp of a college football playoff berth. 

Unfortunately, this has been handled like a college football soap opera that you cannot turn off. This was never going to get past the final game of the season, no matter how many times Kiffin said it during a press conference. And, I would guess that Lane knew that as well, along with his boss Keith Carter. 

For those that think they know where Lane Kiffin will be coaching next season, you're guessing just like the rest of us. There are probably three people that truly know. One of them is the mother to his children. The other handles his business, along with the theatrics that come with ‘silly season’ in college football. 

If we're being honest, this was probably supposed to be one of those years when they hung around 4th or 5th place in the SEC. But, as you've seen, and Ole Miss fans have enjoyed, the Rebels are one win away from a postseason filled with national championship hope. 

Lane Kiffin Holds Keys To College Football Coaching Chaos, As LSU & Florida Linger | Trey Wallace

But somewhere along the way, the idea that there is some type of ‘blood loyalty’ to these schools has been misconstrued. This is a business, and because of how good Ole Miss has been in recent years under Kiffin, many are wondering how he could put himself in this position of pure chaos. 

To that, I ask whether you've been paying attention over the years. Are people forgetting this was a man who was hellbent on leaving Ole Miss for Auburn just a few years ago? If that wasn’t a warning sign, then some of you are wearing blinders. 

Right at this moment, and that could change at any given hour, three different groups of fans are speculating about their standing in college football in the future. Who will be the guy to lead our program in this new era of college athletics?

Ole Miss Was Good For ‘Freshwater,' But Damage Is Done

We all love a good plot twist, right? When Florida fans thought they were going to have this one signed and delivered sometime after the regular season concluded, life came around the corner with a left hook to the face. 

Don't forget that while Lane Kiffin might have the best intentions for people, he works in a cutthroat business where these types of decisions come at a heavy price. I can promise you Kiffin has weighed the options, wondering aloud to himself about how this will look for his legacy when discussed over the next few decades. 

The truth is, he's already caused enough chaos around football for three different coaches combined. Some of that has been self-inflicted, while other parts just come with the business of being a coordinator or head coach. 

Sure, you might have your notifications turned on for his social media posts that usually involved either some type of spiritual quote or him trolling people without hesitation. That's just who he is now, even with the changed outlook on life. To those he calls family, Kiffin is a different man, but enjoys the chaos that comes with being a head coach without a filter. 

A little bit too much if we're looking at how this has played out, with Ole Miss receiving attention for the actions of their head coach, and not the tremendous job this football team has done to get here.

If there was ever a place that Kiffin needed more than the actual job, it was a town like Oxford. For the first time in his coaching career, he found himself at peace with his life outside the football building.

Hot Yoga, Church and Nicholas Sparks? Lane Kiffin Enters New Chapter At Ole Miss

It was so good that the mother of his children moved across the country to be around their son Knox and daughter Landry. I would imagine it takes a lot of maturing for your ex-wife to uproot her life in California, to then move to Mississippi. And I promise, that's not a shot at the state. Trust me, I'm from southern Alabama. 

But it's the people and culture that changed his life, turning him into a guy who sits at home on Sunday nights to hang out on the couch and watch chick-flicks with his daughter and friends. You might think it's all an act, and there are plenty of people that rightfully do, but there's a difference between ‘Real Life Kiffin’ and ‘Head Coach Kiffin.'

Over the past few weeks, you've seen the ‘head coach’ side, whether that's in a press conference setting, or retweeting folks on Monday night as if nothing occurred earlier in the day. 

A ‘Short-Term’ Rental? If So, Get Attention Back On Team

For as much as he's done to help Ole Miss become a problem in the SEC, there's always been a ‘short-term’ rental feel to Kiffin. Could I see him living in Oxford for the rest of his coaching career? Sure, but I promise you every chance he gets he'll be on a boat in the Gulf of America hunting for the next big catch. 

And that's exactly how he's chosen to go about this weird coaching carousel that has led to flights being tracked, with family visiting two different towns in two days. 

News flash: Lane Kiffin's family doesn't need to get a quick glimpse at Gainesville. I would imagine his ex-wife could tell you the best coffee shops, restaurants and neighborhoods in the span of a three-minute conversation. But, some people feel the need to put on a show in the process of agreeing to a change in lifestyle. 

It's like the one ‘friend’ on social media that has to post eighty pictures of where they could end up living with their new job that takes them to a new city. Nobody really cares, but they'll hit the ‘like’ button because it makes that person feel better. 

So remember, what you saw on Sunday and Monday was nothing but Kiffin deciding to add a little splash to the juicy gossip, which was not the best way to stay in the good graces of Ole Miss fans, or his boss. 

Pressley Kiffin, 3, fidgets at the side of her father, Lane, who talks with the media as he is introduced as the new coach of USC football at Heritage Hall.  (Photo by Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

For one fan base, the aftermath will be exciting, with a sense of jubilation heading into the next season. But even if Kiffin decided to stay at Ole Miss, it wasn't because fans showed up on Saturday against Florida and turned it into a massive party, with a side of ‘We Want Lane’ chants. 

In the end, those are just numbers. The only thing that matters is which place can get him to a national championship soon enough, which is the business side of things that some want to act as if they don't exist.

He'll assuredly be indebted to Mississippi for what they did for him on this weird journey. But, nearly four years ago, he let the family have the final say on what job was better for him. 

Now, it's up to him to decide. He's just letting them have a say, but not the final word.