Sep 13, 2025; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin (right) reacts with Vice Chancellor for Intercollegiate Athletics Keith Carter (left) after defeating the Arkansas Razorback at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

The dust is only starting to settle from Lane Kiffin's wild departure from Ole Miss to LSU ahead of the College Football Playoff, but the details of how his exit from Oxford actually played out are still a matter of dispute.

In his statement announcing his move, Kiffin stated that he hoped to coach the Rebels through the CFP, a request that athletics director Keith Carter denied. He also stated that the Ole Miss players wished for him to coach through the rest of the season, though quite a few players have since disputed that claim.

Kiffin also stated that he wasn't informed that he would not be allowed to coach the team until last Sunday morning, hours before he was officially named LSU's coach. According to Carter, that is not accurate.

During an appearance on SuperTalk Mississippi, Carter said that Kiffin and his representation were informed weeks ago that coaching the team in the CFP would not be an option unless he remained as Ole Miss' coach in 2026.

"It was very clear that coaching in the postseason was not going to be an option for Coach Kiffin several weeks ago," Carter said.

Carter also added that Kiffin has said "a lot of things publicly that I'm not sure are totally accurate." He also said that the only matter that needed to be ironed out when the two met on Saturday, following the Egg Bowl, was whether Kiffin would coach in the SEC championship had Alabama lost to Auburn.

Kiffin became the first coach to leave a program ahead of the CFP, and while he likely won't be the last, the nature of his exit has certainly rubbed quite a few people at Ole Miss the wrong way. Whether Kiffin's apparent belief that LSU presents an easier path to a national title is true remains to be seen.

Still, according to Carter, there was never a path to Kiffin being allowed to do both jobs simultaneously.

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This article originally appeared on College Sports Wire: Ole Miss AD disputes Lane Kiffin's statements about coaching in CFP

Reporting by Tyler Nettuno, College Sports Wire / College Sports Wire

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