Kiffin sees tough task first year at Ole Miss

New Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin isn’t promising a repeat of his near-instant turnaround at Florida Atlantic.

This time he inherits a Rebels team coming off a 4-8 season and playing in likely the most brutal gauntlet in college football, the Southeastern Conference Western Division. With the challenges of trying to field a football team during the COVID-19 pandemic added to the mix.

But Kiffin’s hiring, and his track record with quarterbacks and offenses, brought some instant excitement to Ole Miss. His first Florida Atlantic team won its final 10 games and a Conference USA championship in 2017 after the Owls had won only nine collective games the previous three seasons.

“At FAU we were blessed with some really good talent, which for whatever reason hadn’t worked out before,” Kiffin said. “We were able to capitalize on that and win 11 games the first year. But this is more difficult.

“With the early signing day now, it’s hard. You’ve got to wait really two years to change your roster in your second year, because your first year is so hard because so many kids are gone when you get here.”

COVID-19 has made it harder, creating depth issues at positions like the secondary during practice and raising fears of similar problems once the season starts on Saturday against No. 8 Florida. Missed practices in both the spring and fall are also especially hard on a first-year coaching staff trying to implement new systems.