To Spy For? Everything else Ole Miss’ Lane Kiffin had to say on ‘RebTalk’

Ole Miss, defensively, was always preparing for Jalen Milroe to start for Alabama at quarterback.

Still, Nick Saban made the move official earlier this week, and the Rebels will likely have their hands full with his dual-threat capability. Ole Miss ranks second-to-last in the SEC and in the 60s nationally in rushing defense.

This week, a common, always-unsolicited suggestion from the Ole Miss online community is for the Rebels to spy Milroe with a linebacker — potentially uber-athletic, former On3 Five-Star Plus+ prospect Suntarine Perkins.

Actually, Lane Kiffin was asked about it on ‘RebTalk,’ his weekly coach’s show.

“Pete Golding is coming up next, and he was going to draw up exactly what we’re going to do and show it to everybody here,” he said, his tongue planted firmly in his cheek. “Which guy would spy him and from which angle he would come from.”

A quick-witted retort came from the live audience.

“Saban is not listening to this show.”

Kiffin responded in kind.

“But someone is for him. Maybe like that guy that, like, holds up the (bucket) for him to stand on to talk to the team.”

And so it went on a light-hearted and joke-filled edition of ‘RebTalk. Kiffin’s Rebels on Saturday travel to Tuscaloosa to take on Alabama in the SEC opener for both teams. No. 15 Ole Miss (3-0) and the No. 12 Crimson Tide (2-1) will kick off at 2:30 p.m. CT on CBS.

Here’s everything else Kiffin had to say.

ON WHAT HE SAW FROM OLE MISS FROM TULANE TO GEORGIA TECH

KIFFIN: “I thought we got better balance on offense. We were able to run the ball better (and) play more efficient. We didn’t play well, at times, on defense, which was not the case the week before. We made our safeties have to make too many tackles and plays in the game.”

ON HOW A DRAMATICALLY OVERHAULED OLE MISS ROSTER IS COMING TOGETHER

KIFFIN: “We’re getting there. This will be a huge test because we’ve been at home and we’ve been in a 30,000-seat stadium (at Tulane), which was half full of Ole Miss fans. Now we’re going to go to a 100,000-seat stadium. This is a much bigger test, obviously. Not just the opponent, but the environment.”

ON ATTEMPTING TO RECREATE BRYANT-DENNY STADIUM NOISE IN PRACTICE

KIFFIN: “You get a number of those in the SEC. Other places are similar to that. Some of our guys went into Tennessee. Obviously, LSU. But this is one of the hardest ones there is in the country.”

ON ALABAMA COORDINATOR TURNOVER HELPING OR HURTING OLE MISS GAME PREP

KIFFIN: “A lot gets made of that, but you’ve got to remember, people have left there and gone different places a lot of times, and I don’t even know what the number was, but whatever he beat, the 21 assistants in a row? Just because people came from there doesn’t mean you’re going to win. A lot gets made of that. Both buildings know each other really well.”

ON GOLDING’S PREVIOUS ALABAMA EXPERIENCE HELPING THE OLE MISS OFFENSE PREPARE

KIFFIN: “A little bit. I mean, we’ll ask questions once in a while about rules on certain things and stuff. But we’ve been around (Alabama head) coach (Nick) Saban in that system a long time. So, we kind of know a lot of those things anyway — that we’ve used over time.”

GameDay Primer: No. 15 Ole Miss looking to buck history (in primetime!) at No. 12 Alabama

WHAT A WIN OVER SABAN WOULD MEAN TO HIM

KIFFIN: “I don’t really get into that. I know that’s coach-speak to say I don’t get into that, but I really don’t. I think, kind of, sometimes, when you have more, different relationships in competitive games you play each year, you know, it kind of means more when you beat that person, versus someone you have a tremendous amount of respect for; that did a lot for you and you life.

“So, obviously, you want to be competitive and beat ‘em. But it’s kind OF a little bit of a different feelings maybe than another coach in the conference.”

ON OLE MISS’ STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE

KIFFIN: “Kansas City Chiefs are next, I think? Next to LSU and Georgia?”

ON IF HE EXPECTS ALABAMA TO PLAY MULTIPLE QUARTERBACKS

KIFFIN: “I do not. I think (Milroe is) the direction they’re headed, and they’re going to go with him and stay with him in the game. Actually, they should. He’s played the best of the three. That wasn’t really earth-shattering news. He’s the hardest one to defend, for sure.”

ON HIS AGAINST-SCRIPT DECISION TO KICK A FIELD GOAL THE FIRST DRIVE AGAINST GEORGIA TECH

KIFFIN: “And he made it. The first one. So, then I was like, ‘He made it. That was so easy.’ Then the next time we had the ball with 4th-and-goal on the five, we didn’t kick it. ‘Cause I was like, ‘How much fun is that? We already did that.’ So, we went for it and threw an in-route to (tight end Michael) Trigg, wide open. (Trigg dropped the pass.)

“(Kicking is) not fun. What’s the excitement about it? Pay to see that? I get it late in the game.”

ON SOCCER, THE WORLD’S MOST POPULAR (KICKING) SPORT

KIFFIN: “That’s only because they can’t throw it as far as we can.”

ON HIS APPROACH TO PREGAME SPEECHES

KIFFIN: “I’m not a big plan-ahead-of-time on that. I knew a coach that would kind of write them out earlier in the week. If we’d win or if we’d lose, he’d write them out, and I’m just kind of like, ‘Eh.’ I’d feel weird if I looked down to read something to them. I’m more just go with what’s on my mind. Usually start slow, and by the end, it’s basically just, ‘Go kick their ass!’”

ON OLE MISS QB JAXSON DART

KIFFIN: “He’s got a lot more confidence. He’s so excited when anyone on the team makes a play. This is a really cool, neat kid. I kind of had a special (relationship) with (former Ole Miss QB) Matt (Corral). I didn’t know that we would find that type of guy — that’s so competitive, do whatever it takes to win. It’s pretty cool, ‘cause Jaxson’s a little quieter, so you don’t know that at first. It takes some more time. It’s really cool to see some of those Matt-Corral-competitiveness things about him.”

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