Lane Kiffin explains why pressure isn't on LSU players in Ole Miss matchup

This is a big week for Lane Kiffin and the LSU Tigers.

At 2-0 and ranked No. 7 in the country, LSU heads to Oxford, Mississippi, to take on the No. 8-ranked Ole Miss Rebels.

All eyes will be on this game, as Kiffin's last coaching stop was at Ole Miss. He went 55-19 at Ole Miss and led the Rebels to the doorstep of the College Football Playoff before bailing on them for LSU.

He's returning to Ole Miss just two games into his career with the Tigers, and true to form, he's been one of the most controversial figures in the sport.

It's not only because of the way he left Ole Miss, but there's the whole trying to roster former NFL players thing as well.

Outside of Baton Rouge, most are presumably rooting against the Tigers this weekend, but Kiffin doesn't believe his team will have to play tight.

In fact, he believes it's Ole Miss that has all the pressure on it heading into this game.

“You don’t have anything to worry about as far as attention on you all week,” Kiffin told the media on Monday, explaining his message to the team (h/t Wilson Alexander of On3). “There’s going to be so much attention, hatred, everything on me. You just get to go play. And really, the pressure is on them."

Lane Kiffin wants LSU Tigers to play loose heading into game vs. Ole Miss Rebels

Not only does Kiffin view himself as some sort of force field around his team that will protect them from the haters, but his evaluation of 2-0 Ole Miss suggests that the Rebels have every reason to play tight.

Though they are ranked as the underdogs in this one, they've got one of the best one-two punches in college football in quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and running back Kewan Lacey.

“We won seven games last year. They won 13. They returned two Heisman candidates. How often has that ever happened in the same backfield?" Kiffin asked.

Kiffin's message to his team is that they simply have to go play football. The media is going to make this a Kiffin vs. Ole Miss thing or even a Kiffin vs. Pete Golding thing, but at the end of the day, it's just another football game, storylines be damned.

"I know a lot is going to be made about me, but this is about the players being prepared really well and playing really well, Kiffin said. "Pete’s not gonna tackle anybody. I’m not gonna throw any touchdowns.”