Sarkisian vs. Kiffin: Two SEC Coaches, Two Very Different Stances On Job Rumors During Wild Media Session

In what might have been one of the wildest SEC coaches teleconference in recent memory, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian did something on Wednesday that Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin refused to do. 

I don't think I've ever seen two coaches take the opposite approach when discussing their commitment to a school as Sarkisian and Kiffin did during their 10- to 15-minute allotted times with the media.  

If you haven't been paying attention to the news in college football over the past few weeks because you might be on a social media ‘fast’, or just living in an area of the world where there is zero communication, you've missed a lot. 

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

Steve Sarkisian Attacks Speculation About Leaving Texas

Even before conversations around Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss started, there was a report from Dianna Rusinni mentioning that Steve Sarkisian would be interested in leaving Texas for the NFL. 

Well, this quickly led to a rebuttal from CAA, which is the agency that Jimmy Sexton works for and which represents the Longhorns coach. Since then, there have been a few scattered reports about Sarkisian potentially leaving Texas after the season for either the NFL, or another college football job. 

Clearly, this has not sat well with Sarkisian, and he did something on Wednesday that puts the entire Lane Kiffin situation into further focus. 

Amid Family Trips And Job Speculation, Lane Kiffin Refuses To Clarify Ole Miss Coaching Future, Again

Usually, coaches will open their teleconference appearance with an opening statement about their upcoming opponent, or the health of their football team. 

On Wednesday, Sark went straight after the reports, which included one from ESPN analyst Desmond Howard on Tuesday night. 

"I’d like to comment something before I get into our team that has been bothering me now over the past few weeks. That is people reporting that are insinuating that there’s a possibility I could leave the University of Texas, and that is absolutely false and untrue. I’m not going anywhere," Sarkisian said. "Never do I do this because I never want to be a distraction, so I never address these things. At this point, I feel like this is important that I do this because it’s important for our team. 

"It’s important for our university. I’ve had no discussions, not with my agent, not with the university, not with any other school, not with any NFL team, about ever going anywhere else. I came here to win championships."

He wasn’t done either, mentioning that people should stop retweeting some of the reports or videos that make their way around social media. Obviously, this had finally reached a boiling point for the Longhorns coach. 

I think most would appreciate the fact that Sarkisian tackled the subject head on, given the other situation ongoing in the SEC right now. 

Lane Kiffin Does The Complete Opposite Of Sarkisian

As two different schools, LSU and Florida, pursue Lane Kiffin to take over their football programs and leave Ole Miss, the topic is not going away as we approach the postseason. 

Kiffin has skirted around the questions regarding his future in Oxford, mentioning that he doesn't want to disrespect his players by discussing other jobs. 

But, as we've reported, Ole Miss finds itself in a very interesting predicament. The school wants clarity from Kiffin as to his future plans, and if he plans on being the head coach in 2026. This has led to AD Keith Carter asking Lane to let him know by next week what his plans are. 

There have been questions about whether Kiffin would stay on as head coach if he told Carter that he planned on leaving for either Gainesville or Baton Rouge. This led to plenty of inquiries on the SEC teleconference, with most centered around if he would coach past the Egg Bowl. 

"Like I said, I've been saying the same thing for six years; I'm not talking about speaking on other jobs. I'm focused on this one," Kiffin said. "I guess that's kind of spiraling off the question before, like 'Are you coaching in the game?' I don't even understand what the question is. Of course I'm coaching. I mean, unless you guys know something I don't or I'm getting fired and I don't know it." 

Then, Kiffin said he would not speak about other jobs when asked if he could take another job before the playoff began. 

But, it was the question about his family taking trips to Gainesville and Baton Rouge earlier in the week that really put a cap on the entire teleconference. 

"Like I said, I'm not talking on any speculation or stories of things having to do with other jobs. I've said that probably ten times. But I understand you have to ask them."

Let me note, it's not speculation when it's true, regarding the mother of his child taking a trip to opposing schools. Kiffin did end up mentioning that it's actually a good thing when opposing schools, but with a spin. 

"It doesn't feel good on this call. Somehow, it spun really negatively. I've said it before, if programs want your coach, that should be looked at as an amazing thing and a great thing by your fans…"

In the end, Sarkisian put an end to speculation about him potentially leaving Texas, for now. But just a few minutes before, Lane Kiffin continued to find different ways to avoid the noise. 

One thing the Ole Miss head coach didn’t say was that he would be returning to Oxford next season.