David Pollack on Lane Kiffin: ‘Lane don’t give a crap what you think’

Lane Kiffin is an unparalleled figure in college football. The sixth-year Ole Miss head coach is known as much for his wit and occasional social media trolling as his wins on the field.

Still, it’s Kiffin’s uncompromising authenticity and affable personality that has made him arguably college football’s most entertaining head coach. It’s also what makes him someone Georgia Bulldogs alum David Pollack would follow into the heat of battle, on or off the field.

“Lane don’t give a crap what you think. And my favorite thing about Lane is Lane is a little bit socially awkward. Like he’s a different person,” Pollack said recently on his podcast, See Ball Get Ball with David Pollack, when discussing football’s best motivators. “Lane doesn’t like crowds. But when he goes back to Knoxville as an Ole Miss coach, and it’s the first time he’s been back to Knoxville and people are throwing things at him, he was like, ‘I guess they don’t like me very much.’ But just so real.”

As Pollack recalled, Kiffin — who infamously left Tennessee in the dead of night after just one season as head coach to take the USC job in January 2010 — has occasionally embraced the villain role at times, especially with regards to Volunteers fans. That particular conflict reached its climax in 2021 when Kiffin returned to Neyland Stadium for the first time as an opposing coach. The game, which ended in a 31-26 victory for Kiffin and Ole Miss, was even briefly halted when Tennessee fans threw everything from golf balls to mustard bottles onto the field, many in his direction.

Since that game, Kiffin rarely misses an opportunity to poke fun at the Vols and their fans on social media, including once suggesting Tennessee ink a corporate sponsorship with French’s mustard and put their logo on the Neyland Stadium field. For Pollack, Kiffin’s social media trolling is just another reason for his Ole Miss players to love playing for him.

“His social media comes into play, because he’ll take shots. … He’ll say exactly what he thinks. … And I think you appreciate that as a player, as a person, you always appreciate the realness,” Pollack added. “I’m not following any of these guys, or anybody, unless I believe that you believe what you’re saying. It might look different, Kirby (Smart) doesn’t have the same personality as Lane by any stretch, but I know it’s authentic to him and he’s going to say what he believes.

“I think the same thing with Lane, which makes it really fun and unique and different. That’s why you’re just thankful that personalities are so different in this world.”