Lane Kiffin Shades Brent Venables for Saying OU Was 'Better Team' After Ole Miss Game
Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin fired back at Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables for his comments after Saturday's showdown.
Following the Rebels' 34-26 comeback win, Venables declared that he felt the Sooners were "the better team" but admitted that Ole Miss "out-executed us." Kiffin didn't take too kindly to his interpretation of how the game played out.
"That's an interesting take. That's a hot take [that] they have the better team," Kiffin said Monday when asked about Venables' comments, per ESPN. "I wouldn't have thought that people watching would say that."
He continued: "I felt that one, we won at their place in weather that -- as a defensive head coach -- you would normally wish for, and won by eight points. And I think we left a lot out there. I think we should have won by a couple of scores. So I don't know how he evaluated that game that they were the better team."
Kiffin pointed out that Ole Miss also beat Oklahoma 26-14 at home last season, and he further shaded Venables by bringing up his meetings against other teams he had coached.
"Maybe they had the better team last year, too, when we beat them," said Kiffin, who shrugged before apologizing for interrupting a reporter's follow-up question. "Sorry … maybe he had the better team in Oklahoma, when we beat him 55-19 in the national championship -- maybe. Maybe he had the better team at Clemson, when we beat him 45-40 in the national championship at Alabama. Next question, my bad."
On Saturday, the Rebels racked up 431 yards of total offense against a Sooners team that led the nation in total defense and ranked second in scoring defense entering the game. Kiffin praised his team for excelling against such a strong unit.
"We had way more yards, 21 first downs to 14, and we played 87 plays of offense and they had one sack and didn't force any turnovers," Kiffin said. "That's an interesting take. But whatever he needs to say."
It's clear that there's no love lost between Kiffin and Venables, so next year's meeting between the two head coaches will likely produce even more fireworks.
