Kiffin gives Briles and others a second chance

BOCA RATON, FLA.» Lane Kiffin is the head coach at LSU. No, not that one.

Kiffin is still the coach at Florida Atlantic, which has a roster — and coaching staff — featuring many people who have encountered more than a few problems along their various circuitous routes to Boca Raton. So on Sunday at the Owls’ annual preseason media day, Kiffin revealed that he’s given FAU a new moniker.

“We’re LSU,” Kiffin said. “Know what that is? Last Strike U.”

Kendal Briles surely seems like he’s appreciating his second chance.

Briles is now the offensive coordinator at FAU, which approved his hiring even though he was part of the Baylor staff when that program was rocked by a sexual assault scandal. The extent of the problems there ultimately led to his father, Art Briles, being fired as Baylor’s head coach, and tattered the entire university’s reputation. And when Baylor hired Matt Rhule to take over after last season, Kendal Briles was not retained.

Enter FAU, with that secondchance opportunity.

“I needed a job,” Kendal Briles said. “I’ve got three kids. I like to have work. So, yeah, this intrigued me coming out here, for sure.”

He won’t talk about what happened at Baylor, saying only that he’s looking forward and focused on this season.

The Briles-Kiffin relationship is interesting on so many levels. Kiffin was a successful offensive coordinator under Nick Saban at Alabama for the last three seasons, and Briles ran what was a powerful offense at Baylor for the last two. To get Briles to come to Boca Raton — both he and Kiffin said other schools were wooing him — Kiffin had to concede play-calling duties.

They barely knew each other before aligning at FAU, and so far Kiffin has stayed true to his word about letting Briles be the sole play caller.

“He’s completely stepped out of it,” Briles said.

Briles is hardly the only person getting a fresh start at FAU.

Kiffin’s roster includes a slew of players who found trouble at other schools, most notably quarterback De’Andre Johnson.

When he was at Florida State, Johnson was captured on surveillance video punching a woman at a bar. He was kicked off the team and ended up at East Mississippi Community College.