NickSchultz_7
Since the final College Football Playoff rankings came out last month, Lane Kiffin hasn’t hid his displeasure about Ole Miss’ absence. Following Thursday’s Gator Bowl win over Duke, he had one more message for the selection committee in him.
Kiffin took a parting shot at the committee as Ole Miss completed the 52-20 victory over Duke, saying the omission fueled the Rebels. He saw a team that wanted to send a message, and he thought the Rebels did just that.
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Ole Miss came in as the No. 14-ranked team in the final CFP rankings. That made the Rebels one of the first teams out of the 12-team bracket.
“Glad the way our guys played today,” Kiffin told ESPN’s Taylor McGregor. “The quarterback played really well, the defense did. They made a statement to a committee that left them out that, ‘Hey, here’s an ACC team that won nine games,’ and came out and played extremely well. I think that was really important for them to come out and make a statement like that.”
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Ole Miss dominated in every way during Thursday’s game. The Rebels totaled 589 yards of offense – led by 404 yards and four touchdowns from Jaxson Dart – and held Duke to seven points until the final four minutes of the game.
For Dart, it was quite the way to go out after a decorated tenure at Ole Miss. He will head to the NFL Draft this year as the program’s all-time leading passer after transferring in from USC, and his bond with his coach is apparent.
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But Kiffin joked a waiver could be in the cards following some eligibility changes from the NCAA. Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia is notably getting one more year following his lawsuit, which led to a blanket waiver for all JUCO products who played this season and have eligibility in 2025.
“I love him, except for on that last play there when he checks to a pass play he’s not supposed to do, so he’s got to learn a little bit of class there,” Kiffin joked. “But other than that, I love this guy. He’s awesome. You never know. Nowadays, people file waivers. Maybe he’ll be back next year.”
With the win, Ole Miss secured its third 10-win season in four years. While it wasn’t a perfect journey the last two seasons, Lane Kiffin has the program rolling, and he gave credit to the players for rising to the occasion.
“They’ve come together,” Kiffin said. “They played really well. They’re really neat players. They’ve won 21 games in the last two years, and we screwed a couple of them up this year. But just really proud of them and the way they played today against a really good team tonight. I think that was the best defense in the ACC.”
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