Is Lane Kiffin on 'Firm Ground' at Ole Miss? Paul Finebaum Shares Opinion

Could Lane Kiffin depart the Ole Miss Rebels after the 2024 season? Paul Finebaum believes it's a possibility.

Paul Finebaum, radio and ESPN television personality, gets ready to speak on television near activities outside the Superdome, before of the College Football Playoff National Championship game in New Orleans Monday, January 13, 2020. / Ken Ruinard / staff, The Greenville News

Lane Kiffin is entering his fifth season as the head coach of the Ole Miss Rebels, but in the eyes of some, he still hasn't shaken his past of leaving coaching jobs overnight.

Kiffin's tenure at Ole Miss is the longest he has spent as a head coach at any location, and he is particularly famous for leaving the Tennessee Volunteers after one season to coach the USC Trojans beginning in 2010. Although he has voiced his enjoyment of Oxford, some believe that Kiffin could depart the Rebels after the 2024 season.

Recently, SEC Network analyst Paul Finebaum joined an edition of OTF Today, and while on the subject of league coaches who enter the season on the hot seat, Kiffin's name came up in a somewhat-related topic. Although Ole Miss is likely not looking to make a change in its head coaching position, Finebaum believes that Kiffin could once again take another job after this campaign.

"You always have to watch out for the unknown," Finebaum said. "Every time I mention Lane Kiffin's name, there's about 15 headlines, but I think he's somebody to keep your eye on. Does some big job open?

"Would he have taken Alabama last year? 100%. Was he going to Auburn the year before? Yes, he ended up staying. He's not someone that I really ever believe is on firm ground."

Kiffin's saga with the then-open Auburn Tigers job feels like a distant memory at the end of the 2022 season, but could the Rebels once again have to fight to keep their head coach, if 2024 goes well?

Whenever a coach is successful, his name is attached to different jobs that come open around the country, but Kiffin's past doesn't do him any favors in this department. Still, he has not been shy about feeling at home in Oxford, so it may take more than a given job to lure him away from the Rebels.

The current focus for Kiffin is helping guide Ole Miss to its first-ever College Football Playoff appearance. Their season will open at home against the FCS Furman Paladins on Aug. 31.