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The Ole Miss Rebels could will compete for a college football national championship this season.
They have a star quarterback in Jaxson Dart, one of the top tight ends in the country in Caden Prieskorn, and a loaded transfer portal class led by defensive tackle Walter Nolen.
But perhaps most importantly, they have head coach Lane Kiffin, which nearly wasn’t the case.
Kiffin, one of the sport’s top head coaches and biggest personalities, was linked to the Auburn Tigers job both in 2022 and 2023.
Lane Kiffin’s Daughter Landry Convinced Him To Stay At Ole Miss
As it turns out, he nearly took the job. But his daughter Landry, who is currently a student at Ole Miss, kept him from leaving.
Kiffin’s oldest daughter, Landry, is a sophomore at Ole Miss. She moved to Oxford from Los Angeles prior to her senior year of high school to be with her father. In fact, had it not been for Landry, her dad might be coaching at Auburn right now,” Chris Low of ESPN reports. “Kiffin was leaning toward taking the Auburn job toward the end of the 2022 season when Landry came to him with a heartfelt message.
“‘You left me one time for another job when you went to Alabama, and now I’m here with you and you’re going to do it again?’ she asked her father.
“Landry and her friends created a slideshow, complete with music, showing all of them together with Kiffin at Ole Miss.”
Ultimately, Kiffin stayed at Ole Miss to be with his daughter. Auburn retained head coach Bryan Harsin before firing him less than a year later. The Tigers then turned to another former embattled Ole Miss coach, Hugh Freeze, to lead their program.
Now the Rebels have one of the top teams, and coaches, in the nation. And they have Landry Kiffin to thank for it.