The first ever 12-team college football playoff is right around the corner.
That means it’s time for programs who find themselves on the bubble, to start politicking and pleading their case.
None do it better, and louder, than Mississippi’s head coach, Lane Kiffin.
Kiffin took to social media to fire away his team’s résumé, compared to those of the teams that he and his Ole Miss Rebels find themselves battling against.
Those teams would include fellow SEC members, Alabama and South Carolina (along with a presumed ACC team, pending the results of championship weekend).
Part of the job this time of the year is to politick and vouch for your team, to explain why your team deserves to get in, as opposed to somebody else.
What Kiffin did is fine, and not that big of a deal.
He wants to see his team, who he rightfully believes deserves to make the playoff and have a chance to complete for a national championship.
He doesn’t understand why they are even in a position of being compared to South Carolina, who they beat on the road in the regular season by 24.
This is a point Kiffin doesn’t want anyone to forget.
“I have great respect for South Carolina,” Kiffin said.
Ole Miss demolished South Carolina in Columbia earlier this season, 27-3[/caption]
“South Carolina jumping us? Why do we even play the games? We have the same record in the same conference. We went to their place and ran them out of their place.
“It was a 24-point SEC road win and we’re just handing the ball off in the fourth quarter to get out of there.”
Kiffin has a point, head to head wins have to matter. Or else, as Kiffin said, why play the games?
Alabama also defeated South Carolina earlier in the year.
However, South Carolina head coach, Shane Beamer, took offense to the way Kiffin went about it.
Appearing on Outkick’s Dan Dakitch, Beamer expressed his displeasure with Kiffin’s approach.
“He can say what he wants to say. I think the SEC is the best conference in America,” Beamer said.
“I think we deserve more than three teams. In my mind, let’s continue to promote the great things about the South Carolina football program.
“Yeah, I get it, they beat us. I understand exactly where he’s coming from, trying to jump on the table for his team.
“But I think I can stand up for South Carolina and why I think we deserve to be in the playoff without trying to take down other SEC teams as well.”
Whether you agree with Kiffin’s brash style, or Beamer’s classy response, this much is certain, there one of them is going to be extremely upset and disappointed when the final rankings come out next Tuesday.
The ironic part is, there’s more than a good chance that Kiffin and Beamer both find themselves sitting on the couch when the playoff starts, if the committee decides to give Alabama the last spot.