There was one thing Ole Miss AD Keith Carter was not budging on in the chaotic Lane Kiffin exit, and he stood by it no matter what.
Carter sternly asserted an 'absolutely not' to Kiffin's demand to coach in the College Football Playoff when his choice was the LSU Tigers.
Player counsel wanted Kiffin to coach CFP
Until now, it was believed to be a unanimous "no" from the Ole Miss school and the locker room. That was until a recent report from The Athletic's Christopher Kamrani and Joe Rexrode claimed otherwise.
"A team source said that the Rebels’ player leadership council voted 9-3 in favor of Kiffin and the offensive staff staying with the team through its Playoff run."
The vote to keep Kiffin around, even after the betrayal, seemed a safe choice. Kiffin did lead the Rebels to an incredible 11-1 season.
Avoiding a massive gamble of switching to another head coach during the most high-stakes game when they had a choice was the low-risk option.
That was only until Kiffin decided to throw AD Carter under the bus after his shameless abandonment.
"I was hoping to complete a historic six-season run with this year's team by leading Ole Miss through the playoffs..." Kiffin wrote on X once he was settled down in the Death Valley.
"My request to do so was denied by Keith Carter despite the team also asking him to allow me to keep coaching them so they could better maintain their high level of performance."
The infuriating message did its job in riling up the Ole Miss players, as several of them publicly dunked him.
Ole Miss roster rightfully ends Lane Kiffin's victim card ruse
None of the enraged players held back in calling Kiffin out on social media.
For now, they have more important things to focus on. The Tulane rematch will be the perfect opportunity for them to channelize their anger, and show Kiffin how they are doing just fine without him.