Gainesville will require a sustained campaign to see Lane Kiffin as Florida's next head coach.
Napier's been on the hot seat forever, and a three-loss season hasn't backed the Gators' head coach much either. In all this, a grapevine rumor has been making headlines: if Ole Miss football head coach Lane Kiffin is given a call, he'll come to the Swamp.
We're talking about Kiffin, the coach who has been building the program for about five years, leaving a team that currently stands undefeated five games into the season.
When asked about it, Kiffin's answer was equal parts bizarre as the rumor itself.
"He might could."
So as not to leave everyone dumbfounded with the three words, Kiffin followed them up with an explanation on the Pardon My Take podcast.
"On something like that, we have a guy, Tom Luke, who's been here forever. You know, ask him a question and he goes 'We might could'. I'm like, what is he saying? It's either yes or no. That's so stupid. But then after a while I'm like that's brilliant. You're really not saying anything that you could hold accountable."
Is Lane Kiffin coming to Florida?
— Hightop Sports (@hightopsport) October 1, 2025
Source: He might could pic.twitter.com/zZvvtNWxaq
Dismissing the rumor while still leaving just enough to keep everyone guessing has always been classic Kiffin behaviour. But the chances of him leaving Oxford in a season like 2025, where the Rebels look like they're just getting started, are very close to zero.
Alabama, Tuscaloosa floated as another destination
ESPN's Ryan McGee was one of the first to bring the possibility to the headlines. But besides Florida, McGee believed Kiffin might also consider Tuscaloosa as a destination, were he considering a job switch.
"People in Gainesville are convinced that if they call, he’ll leave," McGee said on ESPN College Football.
"I think Lane Kiffin would leave Ole Miss if Tuscaloosa called,” he continued.
For what it's worth, Alabama might not be opening the position for a long time, given how well Kalen DeBoer has been handling the post-Nick Saban era. And their upset revenge win against Vanderbilt will keep the Tuscaloosa fans attached to him for a long time.
As for the Gators, the 29-21 Texas upset might have bought Napier some time in a season that started as a three-loss one. But another loss or two, and Florida will be ready to bring someone else, if not Kiffin.