When Lane Kiffin left Ole Miss for LSU, a storm of controversy and tumult surrounded the program. Then, the Rebels embarked on a playoff run that ended in the national semifinal.
Yet, the former coach recently made statements about his former school. A former Mississippi standout took little time in responding.
Former Ole Miss Defensive Tackle Jerrell Powe Accuses Lane Kiffin of Using Black Players
Jerrell Powe enjoyed a strong career in Oxford, earning All-SEC nods twice during his tenure. Kiffin, in a recent interview, discussed how difficult it was to recruit Black players at Ole Miss.
The state of Mississippi has a long history of racism and prejudice. Powe fired back via social media.
“Lane had no problem selling Oxford to black athletes while stacking classes & winning games, and cashing a $90M contract off our backs. Now Mississippi “too racist”? Man please. He used black players to build himself up, then dipped in a playoff run. Tiger don’t change stripes.”
Kiffin arrived in Mississippi after a three-year tenure at Florida Atlantic. Kiffin was fired at the airport by USC.
He tried to rehabilitate his tattered image as an assistant at Alabama. He took the FAU job during the Crimson Tide’s season and was told to leave before the national championship game.
Ole Miss gave him the opportunity to return to Power Four coaching. He led the team to a 55-19 record and three bowl wins in five tries.
He left Oxford for their hated rival, LSU, a move that did not sit well with fans and media alike. Even Pete Golding, Kiffin’s former defensive coordinator, who became the head coach, finds a way to chide his former boss.
The school’s history is as Kiffin described. For example, the name “Ole Miss” is a callback to what enslaved Black people called the white woman who owned the plantation. The phrase “Ole Miss” is a reference to the plantation era, when enslaved people did the bidding of wealthy landowners.
Furthermore, in 2003, the school retired Colonel Reb, the mascot dressed as a Confederate colonel. On top of that, fans would wave the Confederate flag during games.
Similarly, Mississippi was the last state to remove the flag from its official flag. As a result, the racial tensions and history of problematic behavior continued.
Meanwhile, Kiffin, while employed at Ole Miss, publicly lobbied to remove the Confederate emblem from the state flag. Despite this, Powe seems to believe that the former coach did not have a problem with the state’s history while living there.
Later, Kiffin apologized, but many did not appear to forgive him. On September 19, Kiffin and LSU head to Mississippi and face the Rebels.
MORE: ‘He Doesn’t Really Care’: Lane Kiffin’s True Colors Revealed Despite Ole Miss Apology
