Jul 14, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; Ole Miss Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin speaks to the media during SEC Media Day at Omni Atlanta Hotel. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Godfree-Imagn Images Jordan Godfree-Imagn Images

Lane Kiffin's comments show Kentucky and Mark Stoops are living rent-free in his head

Originally posted on Kentucky Wildcats on SI
By Andrew Stefaniak | Last updated Sep 2, 2025 3:30 PM ET

After a sluggish week one victory for the Kentucky Wildcats over the Toledo Rockets, SEC play is set to begin against the Ole Miss Rebels. This is an Ole Miss team that Kentucky took down in Oxford last season when the Rebs were ranked inside of the top ten.

This win over Ole Miss ended up being the only win Kentucky picked up in SEC play in 2024, but a win that sent Big Blue Nation into a frenzy.

Things look different for the Rebels this season as Jaxson Dart is out and Austin Simmons is in at quarterback, and he had a great showing in the Rebels' week one victory, throwing for 341 yards and three touchdowns.

Per usual, under Lane Kiffin, the offense looks to have a lot of firepower, but could Kentucky find a way to limit the Rebels once again?

In a recent press conference, Coach Kiffin said, "We spent a lot of time in the offseason on these guys and hopefully that will help."

This quote from Coach Kiffin makes it seem like Coach Stoops and the Wildcats are living in his head ahead of Saturday's matchup.

Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

The last three times these teams have played, it has come down to the wire. Kentucky lost to Ole Miss by a score of 42-41 in 2020, 22-19 in 2022, and of course pulled out the 20-17 victory in Oxford last season.

Kiffin wants to score a lot of points, and aside from the shootout in 2020, that hasn't been the case against Stoops. The ugly rock fight style of football Kentucky plays does seem to have a negative effect on the Rebels' offense, and Stoops is hoping that will be the case again this season.

The goal for Kentucky is for both teams to look up at the scoreboard with ten minutes left in the game and see the score being something like Ole Miss 14- Kentucky 10. If this were the case, the Wildcats would be a drive away from winning the game like they were last season.

Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

If this game goes in Kentucky's favor, it will be a low-scoring, ugly football game. If it goes in favor of Ole Miss, it will be a high-scoring affair, but the Wildcats have zero chance to beat the Rebels in a shootout.

Stoops seems to be in Kiffin's head, and hopefully, this will lead to the Wildcats pulling off another upset over Ole Miss.

This article first appeared on Kentucky Wildcats on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: