Although no longer used, the Devil’s Advocate was a position used by the Catholic Church as one who argued against candidates for Sainthood using well thought out and logical arguments. The point was to either uncover anything legitimate that might disqualify a candidate or hopefully round out and strengthen the candidate in question as a result of the debate. I find this to be a useful exercise particularly if you stick to the facts and avoid arguments based in emotion. I will attempt to do this using what are hopefully the best and most charitable arguments and I give no value judgements as to which I think is right. As an imperfect person I may miss the mark with some of this but I hope this helps put everything in perspective.
Why Lane should stay at Ole Miss
1. The Commitment- I have been amazed at the contract OM is offering and the rapid manner that fans have responded to the Grove Collective in raising money to be competitive with NIL. A near 10 Million dollar contract are waters I never imagined OM could swim in but here we are. Facilities are getting a face lift as we speak. OM has made a serious and public commitment to the football program that is impressive by any standard. This is not the Ole Miss of old. They want to compete for championships.
2. 2023 Team- This one is dependent upon how well recruiting and use of the portal goes but with what is currently coming back next year if you hit on some DL and WRs and maybe a LB in the portal this could be and maybe should be the most talented roster that Lane will have had at Ole Miss. You have an off season to work with Dart and if he makes a jump into a top 4 QB in the SEC next year this offence will be extremely talented.
3. The Playoff- If the goal is to be in a position to make the Playoff and with a 12 team playoff coming last years team would have been in it and this years team was playing meaningful games in November to potentially be in it. This team is a player or 2 away from being in it this year.
4. Auburn’s Roster- The portal certainly makes this a little easier but their roster is currently a mess. Does Lane have the patience for another rebuild? Are all the power brokers at Auburn going to be pulling in the same direction? History says probably not.
5. Auburn and their boosters- Much has been said about how bad a fit Lane would be at Auburn. I would love to know what is said in Coaching circles about what happened at Auburn the past few years. From the outside looking in it appears certain power players tried to make up a scandal (I think Harsin should sue for defamation) and fire their coach and they also with held money that could have been used in NIL for recruiting. What a crazy and backwards situation. I don’t know how you trust such an insane booster culture and power structure. Not to mention Lane covets autonomy. I find it hard to believe he will get that at Auburn.
Why Lane should go to Auburn
1. Historically easier to win- This one you might not want to admit but it is true. In the past 5 to 10 years OM has made a move to be elevate its program and you could argue as of today that Auburn isn’t a clear and better job than OM but historically it is absolutely is. They have played for 2 national titles this century and won it with the Cam Newton team. They also went undefeated with Tuberville. They certainly have faced extreme highs and lows throughout that run but by an measure they have been more successful.
2. Easier to recruit- I want to be specific with this one. OM has been able to recruit comparable talent to Auburn at most positions but Auburn has consistently had more success with getting the Elite Defensive Linemen and Linebackers that you have to have in this league to win battles on the Line of scrimmage. I am pretty sure Derek Hall would step in and immediately be the best player on Ole Miss defense if he transferred. Those type of guys are harder to come by historically at OM. Maybe NIL can change that but the point still stands.
3. Deep pockets- The other side of the booster culture is they have lots of money to spend, they just rarely agree on who and how to spend it. Even with the commitment that OM has made, Auburn can go deeper. I don’t know specific numbers because wild numbers are out there but they do appear to have no problem over paying for a coach and since they didn’t let Harsin use the money they had they surely do have a decent amount available for NIL, at least for this year.
4. Stadium- I don’t think this should matter but it is clearly a big deal to Lane so I will include it. They have a large stadium that they do good job of filling up. I would argue the crowds for KY, Auburn, and Bama this year were great crowds that made a difference for Ole Miss in those games I just think Lane was overwhelmed by how passionate and loud the TN crowd was last year. He clearly wants large crowds like that.
5. Alabama- This is not something I would consider but again it looks like this really matters to Lane. Is it easer to compete with Alabama at Auburn? If you look at the all time records for OM vs Bama and Auburn vs Bama you would have to say yes. Not a lot of games in the win column for Ole Miss when they play Alabama. Now I would argue that this year, and I rarely if ever have said this, Ole Miss probably should have won the game and I would also argue Lane didn’t handle the last sequence in the Red Zone well. That is on him and his desire to beat Bama allowed emotion to creep in and effect how he coached the game. I also think he was freaked out by the Bama game last year. When he said get your popcorn ready I think he expected to win the game and instead they were thoroughly dominated. He then watched a very bad Auburn team almost upset Bama at the end of the year. I think Lane should follow his own advice and view every game as different but you do have to admit historically Auburn has had more success against Alabama.
Bonus- Why should Ole Miss fans hope he leaves?
I personally want Lane to stay just to see what could happen with the 2023 team and all its potential but just because I enjoy playing the Devil’s Advocate I will make the case for why OM should want him to go.
1. Objectively what is his best win as a head coach? – Most everyone agrees Lane is an exceptional play caller. But as a head coach, and I would ask anyone reading this to be brutally honest, what is his great win or accomplishment as a head coach? He had a great opportunity to beat Alabama this year and keep the playoffs in play and just didn’t do it. He beat an ok A&M team, outlasted an ok Arkansas team, and beat Indiana in the Covid Year. None of those are the signature win that take the program to the next level. Also, OM does not and should not pay him $9 Million to lose in the manner that that he did at Arkansas.
2. Bridges Burned- If Lane stays this entire situation and his lack of true commitment could definitely be a detriment on the recruiting trail. Do the players that you need to be the foundation of your program want to commit to a guy who by appearances is after every major coaching job? Will the fans recommit to him after this debacle? Probably but not completely.
3. Receivers- This is probably not a huge deal but OM has had no problems recruiting Elite receivers the past 10 years and yet Lane has been unable to recruit any impact guys at that position. Even having one guy who can take the top off the defense could have made huge impact against Alabama and LSU this year. Either they are missing on the big fish or have seriously misevaluated talent.
4. Program Culture- Kiffin has assembled some talented teams but I don’t know that he has shown he can build a talented program. What exactly are the cornerstones? Transfer to the Sip, party at the Sip? Along with the culture issue is him flirting with jobs every year. It is not sustainable to do this every year and expect kids to commit to you.
5. Make a Statement- This is probably the one that I am most intrigued by. Ole Miss has 9 and going on $10 Million dollars to spend on a coach. What a great opportunity to make a statement that OM is for real and wants to beat an Elite program. Who do we get? Go after Luke Fickell? Take a chance on Deion Sanders and have someone who gets you in every room with recruits? Get a successful coach like Matt Rhule or get a big name we aren’t thinking about yet. If Lane leaves I say embrace the moment and go make a dynamic hire that makes a splash in college football.
These are some of my thoughts. Feel free to disagree. I apologize for the length.
Why Lane should stay at Ole Miss
1. The Commitment- I have been amazed at the contract OM is offering and the rapid manner that fans have responded to the Grove Collective in raising money to be competitive with NIL. A near 10 Million dollar contract are waters I never imagined OM could swim in but here we are. Facilities are getting a face lift as we speak. OM has made a serious and public commitment to the football program that is impressive by any standard. This is not the Ole Miss of old. They want to compete for championships.
2. 2023 Team- This one is dependent upon how well recruiting and use of the portal goes but with what is currently coming back next year if you hit on some DL and WRs and maybe a LB in the portal this could be and maybe should be the most talented roster that Lane will have had at Ole Miss. You have an off season to work with Dart and if he makes a jump into a top 4 QB in the SEC next year this offence will be extremely talented.
3. The Playoff- If the goal is to be in a position to make the Playoff and with a 12 team playoff coming last years team would have been in it and this years team was playing meaningful games in November to potentially be in it. This team is a player or 2 away from being in it this year.
4. Auburn’s Roster- The portal certainly makes this a little easier but their roster is currently a mess. Does Lane have the patience for another rebuild? Are all the power brokers at Auburn going to be pulling in the same direction? History says probably not.
5. Auburn and their boosters- Much has been said about how bad a fit Lane would be at Auburn. I would love to know what is said in Coaching circles about what happened at Auburn the past few years. From the outside looking in it appears certain power players tried to make up a scandal (I think Harsin should sue for defamation) and fire their coach and they also with held money that could have been used in NIL for recruiting. What a crazy and backwards situation. I don’t know how you trust such an insane booster culture and power structure. Not to mention Lane covets autonomy. I find it hard to believe he will get that at Auburn.
Why Lane should go to Auburn
1. Historically easier to win- This one you might not want to admit but it is true. In the past 5 to 10 years OM has made a move to be elevate its program and you could argue as of today that Auburn isn’t a clear and better job than OM but historically it is absolutely is. They have played for 2 national titles this century and won it with the Cam Newton team. They also went undefeated with Tuberville. They certainly have faced extreme highs and lows throughout that run but by an measure they have been more successful.
2. Easier to recruit- I want to be specific with this one. OM has been able to recruit comparable talent to Auburn at most positions but Auburn has consistently had more success with getting the Elite Defensive Linemen and Linebackers that you have to have in this league to win battles on the Line of scrimmage. I am pretty sure Derek Hall would step in and immediately be the best player on Ole Miss defense if he transferred. Those type of guys are harder to come by historically at OM. Maybe NIL can change that but the point still stands.
3. Deep pockets- The other side of the booster culture is they have lots of money to spend, they just rarely agree on who and how to spend it. Even with the commitment that OM has made, Auburn can go deeper. I don’t know specific numbers because wild numbers are out there but they do appear to have no problem over paying for a coach and since they didn’t let Harsin use the money they had they surely do have a decent amount available for NIL, at least for this year.
4. Stadium- I don’t think this should matter but it is clearly a big deal to Lane so I will include it. They have a large stadium that they do good job of filling up. I would argue the crowds for KY, Auburn, and Bama this year were great crowds that made a difference for Ole Miss in those games I just think Lane was overwhelmed by how passionate and loud the TN crowd was last year. He clearly wants large crowds like that.
5. Alabama- This is not something I would consider but again it looks like this really matters to Lane. Is it easer to compete with Alabama at Auburn? If you look at the all time records for OM vs Bama and Auburn vs Bama you would have to say yes. Not a lot of games in the win column for Ole Miss when they play Alabama. Now I would argue that this year, and I rarely if ever have said this, Ole Miss probably should have won the game and I would also argue Lane didn’t handle the last sequence in the Red Zone well. That is on him and his desire to beat Bama allowed emotion to creep in and effect how he coached the game. I also think he was freaked out by the Bama game last year. When he said get your popcorn ready I think he expected to win the game and instead they were thoroughly dominated. He then watched a very bad Auburn team almost upset Bama at the end of the year. I think Lane should follow his own advice and view every game as different but you do have to admit historically Auburn has had more success against Alabama.
Bonus- Why should Ole Miss fans hope he leaves?
I personally want Lane to stay just to see what could happen with the 2023 team and all its potential but just because I enjoy playing the Devil’s Advocate I will make the case for why OM should want him to go.
1. Objectively what is his best win as a head coach? – Most everyone agrees Lane is an exceptional play caller. But as a head coach, and I would ask anyone reading this to be brutally honest, what is his great win or accomplishment as a head coach? He had a great opportunity to beat Alabama this year and keep the playoffs in play and just didn’t do it. He beat an ok A&M team, outlasted an ok Arkansas team, and beat Indiana in the Covid Year. None of those are the signature win that take the program to the next level. Also, OM does not and should not pay him $9 Million to lose in the manner that that he did at Arkansas.
2. Bridges Burned- If Lane stays this entire situation and his lack of true commitment could definitely be a detriment on the recruiting trail. Do the players that you need to be the foundation of your program want to commit to a guy who by appearances is after every major coaching job? Will the fans recommit to him after this debacle? Probably but not completely.
3. Receivers- This is probably not a huge deal but OM has had no problems recruiting Elite receivers the past 10 years and yet Lane has been unable to recruit any impact guys at that position. Even having one guy who can take the top off the defense could have made huge impact against Alabama and LSU this year. Either they are missing on the big fish or have seriously misevaluated talent.
4. Program Culture- Kiffin has assembled some talented teams but I don’t know that he has shown he can build a talented program. What exactly are the cornerstones? Transfer to the Sip, party at the Sip? Along with the culture issue is him flirting with jobs every year. It is not sustainable to do this every year and expect kids to commit to you.
5. Make a Statement- This is probably the one that I am most intrigued by. Ole Miss has 9 and going on $10 Million dollars to spend on a coach. What a great opportunity to make a statement that OM is for real and wants to beat an Elite program. Who do we get? Go after Luke Fickell? Take a chance on Deion Sanders and have someone who gets you in every room with recruits? Get a successful coach like Matt Rhule or get a big name we aren’t thinking about yet. If Lane leaves I say embrace the moment and go make a dynamic hire that makes a splash in college football.
These are some of my thoughts. Feel free to disagree. I apologize for the length.
