Ole Miss Player Slams Ex-Coach Lane Kiffin for 'Trying to Steal Our Shine' Ahead of Their Sugar Bowl Upset Win

NEED TO KNOW

• Lane Kiffin's sudden departure from the Ole Miss Rebels last month felt like "a slap in the face" to players, defensive tackle Zxavian Harris told ESPN
• Harris added that Kiffin is "just trying to steal our shine" and said the former head coach "was trying to be a troll" before their Sugar Bowl win
• The Ole Miss Rebels defeated the Georgia Bulldogs on Jan. 1 and will take on the Miami Hurricanes in the College Football Playoffs semifinal on Jan. 8

Former Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin's sudden exit from the team last month left players feeling disrespected.

Rebels defensive tackle Zxavian Harris told ESPN he thinks Kiffin's behavior amid his transition to rival LSU is Kiffin "just trying to steal our shine," particularly after the coach said he wanted to attend Ole Miss' Sugar Bowl game on Thursday, Jan. 1.

Harris added, "That's all he's trying to do. That's all he's been trying to do is steal our shine."

After Ole Miss's win over the Georgia Bulldogs on New Year's Day, which secured their spot in the College Football Playoff semifinal, the former head coach congratulated the Rebels on social media, writing, "What a great finish!!! So much fun!! Only two more to go @OleMissFB," alongside photos of his family celebrating the win.

What a great finish!!! So much fun!! Only two more to go ⁦@OleMissFB⁩ 🇹🇹 🪄 🏆 #BTApic.twitter.com/axTTTHP5pO

— Lane Kiffin (@Lane_Kiffin) January 2, 2026

Harris told ESPN that Kiffin's sudden exit from the Rebels just before they competed in the College Football Playoffs felt like "a slap in the face" adding, "Like a slap and the backhand."

"He was trying to be a troll," Harris said. "We're going to troll him. We got something for him."

Kiffin accepted the head coaching job at LSU — a more storied program with multiple national championships which had recently faltered under former head coach Brian Kelly, who was fired earlier this season — on Nov. 30, a shocking move midway through the college football season.

Ole Miss opted to not let Kiffin finish out the season and fired him, which meant leaving the team during one of their best seasons. After the announcement, a photo shared on social media appeared to show that Ole Miss left Kiffin's clothing rack out on the street outside of an athletic facility.

A spokesperson for the Ole Miss athletic department did not respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment on the image, shared by Ole Miss football podcaster Ben Garrett. 

Kiffin's daughter Landry, 20, trolled "angry football fans" in a TikTok video following her father's move to LSU, sharing an eight-second TikTok video set to the song "The Joke Is On You" by Niki Watkins, of herself singing and blowing kisses to the camera.

Over the video, Landry wrote, “Wish I could be as creative as angry football fans,” adding a heart-hands emoji.

In her caption, the Ole Miss student wrote about her father, who accepted the head coaching job at LSU: “It’s not that deep."

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