College football is slowly becoming more and more like the NFL, but there are still some key differences. When it comes to hiring head coaches from other schools, in college football, coaches can be contacted for an opening at any point in the season, while in the NFL, a coach can not be contacted until their season has concluded.
The state of college football right now, when it comes to head coach vacancies and the way things are going with the coaching carousel, has really angered former Alabama head coach Nick Saban. On College GameDay in Eugene for Oregon vs. USC, Saban was pretty clear about his feelings on where the problem lies, and it isn't with Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin.
Saban believes that being able to contact coaches in the middle of the season, especially when a team is doing well. He doesn't want to blame his former offensive coordinator and instead blames college football as a whole.
It seems thought that Saban forgets how Kiffin's job at Alabama ended.
Lane Kiffin has shown a pattern of playing into the media too much instead of focusing on his team
“This isn’t a Lane Kiffin conundrum, it’s a college football conundrum”
— Dan Wolken (@DanWolken) November 22, 2025
It’s also a Lane Kiffin conundrum, Nick, and as the guy who had to fire him BEFORE THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME because he was so distracted, you should know better. https://t.co/C4aSgJpODk
Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin certainly has had an interesting history when it comes to coaching. He has spent time at major programs like Tennessee and USC, as well as Alabama, all as coordinators and the head coach at USC for a time. Alabama was Kiffin's final spot before taking another head coaching position at FAU.
When Kiffin got the job at FAU, he chose to still with the Crimson Tide throughout their playoff run, but before the playoff game, Nick Saban chose to replace Kiffin with fellow USC coach Steve Sarkisian. Saban made this move because Kiffin just was not focused on what he needed to be focused on when it came to Alabama winning the championship.
So, Saban wants to talk about this being a college football problem, but Kiffin has shown this pattern before of getting distracted when another job has been on the table, and that is what Yahoo Sports reporter Dan Wolken is trying to remind Saban of.
While yes, the rules could change, this is not just a college football problem; Kiffin has played his part in all of this as well.