With reporting emerging this morning finally about the coaching future of Lane Kiffin, as many expect him now to make the jump to LSU, the 11-1 Ole Miss Rebels— all but certainly in the playoff field for the first time in history— face the prospect of the tournament without their head coach and playcaller as he leaves for a rival.
That's a crushing blow for a program that has seen its greatest-ever success under Kiffin, and the situation has deteriorated to the point that it seems almost a certainty that they will not be playing in the Playoff with him at the helm.
With this in mind, this debilitated program has to take on a new light in the committee's eyes. With the Aggies joining the pack of one-loss teams, this makes a clearly-defined floor for the Aggies to drop in the upcoming rankings.
After Lane Kiffin dust begins to settle, there is clearly-defined floor for Aggies in upcoming rankings drop
It would be a manifest injustice for the Aggies to drop below the Ole Miss Rebels in the upcoming rankings in light of this news. This is about to be a team that is completely rudderless, as the face of their program is all but certain to depart, along with— reportedly— a large piece of this staff.
Unless something drastic changes between now and the official separation, the staff at Ole Miss will be gutted.
— Matt Hayes (@MattHayesCFB) November 30, 2025
Ole Miss assistants have been told by school, “if you’re going, go now.”
Hope, for the players, cooler heads prevail.
Without these key pieces of this staff, the Rebels will be a shell of themselves. The Aggies, in turn, should not drop lower than 6th, as the Rebs sit at 7th.
Frankly, the Aggies should either dip down to 4th or only 5th, but we know that the committee has been less than charitable to the Ags this season. 4th would get them that first-round bye, so 5th may actually be preferable— that way, they play a G5 champion at home in Kyle Field, which would be a great draw.
6th would not be the worst either, as they would host either Virginia or Duke in College Station (in all likelihood). One thing is for sure, though: it would be a complete travesty for the Aggies to be lower than 6th.