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Internet Reacts to Viral Lane Kiffin Quote In Vanity Fair Profile

Originally posted on College Sports Only
By Spencer Rozell | Last updated May 12, 2026 9:06 AM ET

Lane Kiffin is truly in a league of his own.

In a profile with Vanity Fair, Kiffin spoke about Ole Miss and how its lack of distance to the Confederate era made recruiting difficult.

In explaining his decision to leave Ole Miss for LSU, Lane Kiffin seems willing to invoke Ole Miss’s struggle to distance itself from symbols like the Confederate flag, Colonel Rebel, and the nickname “Ole Miss” itself.

When he was coaching there, Kiffin says, top recruits would…

— VANITY FAIR (@VanityFair) May 11, 2026

Perhaps Kiffin should’ve done some research on his current team…

LSU wasn’t named after the animal “Tigers.”

They are actually named after the “Louisiana Tigers”, a particularly brutal brigade of rebel soldiers in the Civil War who also slaughtered hundreds of freed black men in the New Orleans Massacre 1866. pic.twitter.com/0xnAAPzVGn

— CFB Home (@CFBHome) May 11, 2026

Kiffin has always had a holier-than-thou attitude, but these remarks did not land well with Ole Miss fans, who are already bitter about the coach leaving a playoff run midseason to join the rival Tigers for $91 million.

If you thought Kiffin’s return to Oxford, MS in September was going to be bad, he just opened a whole new can of worms.

Lane Kiffin on the sidelines when LSU plays Ole Miss on September 19th: pic.twitter.com/L5WeqthP0x

— Tiger Vibes (@Tiger__Vibes) May 11, 2026

Donald Trump might have to send the NATIONAL GUARD to the LSU vs. OLE MISS game at this rate

— Blain Crain (@Blain_Crain) May 11, 2026

The internet also had a big response to Kiffin’s quote:

Lane Kiffin saying he left Ole Miss because LSU is less racist: https://t.co/Mndtod98V9 pic.twitter.com/8963qm6Cni

— College Sports Only (@CSOonX) May 11, 2026

Lane Kiffin the second he leaves Ole Miss pic.twitter.com/0IA14fWceh

— Three Year Letterman (@3YearLetterman) May 11, 2026

Lane Kiffin got people thinking this is what 2026 Mississippi is like pic.twitter.com/JTX8gXSXOU

— Chris Phillips (@CPhilly19) May 12, 2026

Lane Kiffin finding out his new mascot is named after a Confederate army infantry unit….. pic.twitter.com/1Ni7QImV3Q

— ᛭ Ian ᛭ (@KnightspurHouse) May 11, 2026

Is it time for Lane Kiffin to stop talking about his former team in a negative light?

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