Lane Kiffin Can Exorcise the Last of His College Coaching Demons vs. USC

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Lane Kiffin knows the drill: Don’t make waves. Not this week.

There have been no tweets. No interviews granted. Nothing on the Alabama side to draw attention to the fact Kiffin will be facing the last program that fired him as a head coach—Southern California.

So far it’s been similar to when he went back to Tennessee for the first time in 2014—uneventful—but that will change.

“I know it sounds strange; I really have not thought a lot about it,” Kiffin said just before the start of Alabama’s training camp, during the only time Nick Saban makes his coordinators available to reporters until the postseason. “It really doesn’t matter.

“I’m sure there will be some different feelings and emotions.”

While the Crimson Tide’s offensive coordinator has had some other things on his mind, like having a quarterback competition extend into the regular season for the third straight year, he’ll be one of the main storylines when Alabama plays USC at neutral-site AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

It may be the marquee game of opening weekend. Both teams are ranked, with the Crimson Tide No. 1 and the Trojans No. 20, and the juggernauts claim 27 national championships between them.

But a sense of revenge figures to be in the air as well, even if neither side really wants to admit it.

“Privately, deep down, I think Lane Kiffin's incredibly fired up to have an opportunity to coach Alabama offensively against USC,” said Kirk Herbstreit, who will call the game for ABC (7 p.m. CT).

Although coaching connections are a Week 1 theme in general, with former Wisconsin defensive coordinator Dave Aranda helping lead LSU to Lambeau Field to face the Badgers, and Noel Mazzone calling offensive plays for Texas A&M against visiting UCLA, Kiffin’s reunion stands out because he’s such a polarizing figure and was USC’s head coach from 2010-13.

John Russell/Associated Press/Associated Press

It’s on par with the love/hate relationship Saban has with his former teams—featuring a burning effigy the first time he went back to Baton Rouge with Alabama in 2008 (and won in overtime). In Kiffin’s case:

•When he was fired by the Oakland Raiders in 2007, the youngest NFL head coach of the modern era had a 5-15 record. Owner Al Davis, who at the time was 79, called him a “flat-out liar” in a press conference, and said, “I picked the wrong guy.”

• When Kiffin resigned at the end of his only season at Tennessee, to accept what he called his dream job at USC, a riot broke out on campus. Some Volunteers fans will never forgive him for leaving so abruptly. 

• Five games into the 2013 season, following a disappointing 62-41 loss at Arizona State, Kiffin was called off the team bus at Los Angeles International Airport and sacked.

He joked a little about it during media day for the College Football Playoff national championship in January, saying the last time he had been to Phoenix resulted in his being fired and "I was a good 20 yards off the tarmac."

But Kiffin also called it the low point of his career, and to that no one was laughing.

Year	Team	Record
2007	Raiders	4-12
2008	Raiders	1-3
2009	Tennessee	7-6
2010	USC	8-5
2011	USC	10-2
2012	USC	7-6
2013	USC	3-2

Overall, he has a record of 35-21 as a college football head coach. Kiffin’s 2011 USC team won the Pac-12 South, but was ineligible for postseason play, including the conference championship, due to NCAA penalties that also resulted in the handicap of numerous scholarships lost.

“Deep down there is something a little bit special for him going up against USC, just to remind the USC folks what they let go,” Herbstreit said. “He's a human. He has a competitive spirit.

“I think anybody would be crazy to say it wasn't a little bit special or there's a little bit more incentive there.”

Although Herbstreit doesn’t think lingering emotions will affect the game’s outcome, Kiffin’s familiarity with the Trojans might.

There are 19 players on the USC roster who played for him, including eight who are expected to start against Alabama: tackles Zach Banner and Chad Wheeler, quarterback Max Browne, tailback Justin Davis, safety Chris Hawkins, inside linebacker Michael Hutchings, wide receivers Steven Mitchell Jr. and wide receiver Darreus Rogers.

Half of the current USC coaching staff worked under him as well, including head coach Clay Helton. Consequently for them, the game will be a bit like looking in a mirror.

Heisman Trophy	Derrick Henry, Alabama, 2015
	Reggie Bush, USC, 2005*
Maxwell Award	Derrick Henry, Alabama, 2015
Walter Camp Award	Derrick Henry, Alabama, 2015
	Reggie Bush, USC, 2005
Doak Walker Award	Derrick Henry, Alabama, 2015
	Reggie Bush, USC, 2005
Unitas Golden Arm Award	Matt Leinart, USC, 2005
Biletnikoff Award	Amari Cooper, Alabama, 2014
	Marqise Lee, USC, 2012
Rimington Trophy	Ryan Kelly, Alabama, 2015
Jim Thorpe Award	Eric Berry, Tennessee, 2009
Wuerffel Trophy	Matt Barkley, USC, 2012

“You always want the best for the guy who gave you the opportunity,” said Helton, who also called Kiffin “Offensively brilliantly minded.”

“One of his strengths is he’s able to find ways to get his best players the ball.”

The example Helton gave was Alabama’s game against Florida in 2014, when former Saban assistant Will Muschamp was the Gators’ head coach.

“The first play of the game they motion [Kenyan] Drake out of the backfield and you see the linebacker go with Drake, which automatically signals man coverage,” Helton said. “You hear this whistle on TV, it’s his patented whistle when he sees something in play, [he] looks over and changes the route with Drake to a slant-and-go.”

The result was an 87-yard touchdown, en route to a 42-21 victory. It’s the kind of thing Helton hopes he doesn’t experience on Saturday, but Alabama is now known for.

“Some days when you’re out there just dying, Kiffin just loves to just check, check, throw another fade, another fade,” Crimson Tide cornerback Marlon Humphrey said about practicing against his team’s offense. “With Kiffin out there, he’s just a mastermind with the play-calling. If he sees you tired, that’s when ‘Nah, forget the route, we’re gonna check …' That’s usually how it goes.”

Meanwhile, Helton’s staff has little comparable insight into anyone else on the Crimson Tide. Offensive coach Neil Callaway played at Alabama (1974-77), running backs coach Tommie Robinson and offensive coordinator Tee Martin both hail from the state and tight ends assistant Keary Colbert was on Saban’s support staff in 2014-15.

It pales in comparison to Kiffin’s insight, and he also has the advantage of having been in a similar situation before.

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Two years ago, when Kiffin made his first return trip to Knoxville, he barely even acknowledged the throng of fans and reporters who were waiting for the Crimson Tide busses to arrive. Wearing his West Coast styled Ray-Ban sunglasses when disembarking, he went about his business and later enjoyed Alabama’s 34-20 win.

If he smoked a victory cigar, per tradition in the Third Saturday in October rivalry, he did so away from the spotlight.

“Same old Lane,” Alabama wide receiver ArDarius Stewart said was his coach's reaction, although the players knew what it meant to him.

“It’s always a big game when you go back and play your former team,” tight end Brandon Greene said.

It wasn’t until this past offseason, after another win over Tennessee (19-14 in 2015), that Kiffin really started poking the Vols fans a bit on social media, including re-tweeting the headline: “Tennessee loaded with top-level recruits—but they're leaving the state” (it's since been deleted).

Perhaps there was finally enough water under the bridge, at least from his perspective, and holding a grudge against the Raiders doesn't seem worth it at this point. But having the upper hand on the field obviously helps, which Kiffin hopes to earn against the Trojans while taking another step toward becoming a head coach again.

“It won’t be about me, just like it wasn’t about me when we were at Tennessee, it’s not about Coach when we go to LSU,” he said. “It’s about our players playing really well. All we can do is put our players in the best position to win.”

Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Christopher Walsh is a lead SEC college football writer. Follow Christopher on Twitter @WritingWalsh.