Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin made an appearance on ESPN's "College Gameday" on Saturday.
Kiffin, Alabama's offensive coordinator from 2014-16, is seeking his 100th career win as a head coach today as his No. 5 Rebels host Kentucky. After fielding questions from the crew about Ole Miss' game, he also answered questions about the biggest game of the day, No. 1 Georgia at No. 4 Alabama. Pat McAfee asked Kiffin what his advice to Kalen DeBoer would be ahead of DeBoer's SEC debut.
"I don't think Kalen needs any advice from me. He's done a great job wherever he's been," Kiffin said. "It's going to be an unbelievable environment tonight, I'm sure it is already there. For two of the best programs in America to be playing, it should be really exciting for you guys."
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In classic Kiffin fashion, he also had some jokes for his former Crimson Tide boss and newest GameDay team member, Nick Saban . Desmond Howard asked Kiffin about Saban's humorous commercial appearances this season and if he ever saw that funny side of Saban while on his staff at Alabama .
"I love Coach, but I never saw that side of him," Kiffin said. "I paused it, replayed it, videoed it with my phone and I sent it to Kirby (Smart), and I was like, 'Who is this guy? Man, this guy's awesome.'"
Saban didn't have much of a reputation as a jokester during his Alabama tenure, unlike Kiffin, who has always been a more whimsical personality. This clash of personalities put the two at odds at times during Kiffin's tenure as offensive coordinator, particularly at the end of it, but the two seem to be on great terms these days.
Kiffin also made his pick for the biggest game of the year before going off the air.
"Kirby's got a 40-game win streak in the regular season, but that's Alabama, and they're playing on Nick Saban field tonight," Kiffin said. "I've got to go Roll Tide!"
Naturally, Kiffin's "Roll Tide" received an enthusiastic welcome from the large crowd gathered on The Quad to catch the show.
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Saturday's contest will be the first SEC game for Alabama without Saban on the sideline since 2006. DeBoer will make his conference debut on the biggest stage possible, one of the most anticipated regular season matchups in recent memory for either team and for the SEC as a whole.
Meanwhile, Georgia's Kirby Smart will look to avenge last season's 27-24 loss to Alabama in the SEC Championship game that kept the Bulldogs out of the College Football Playoff. Smart, a defensive coordinator for Alabama under Saban from 2008-15, is 1-5 against his former team, with the lone victory coming in the 2021 CFP National Championship. Spoiling DeBoer's SEC debut on the field that now bears the name of Smart's former boss would be an ideal way to bounce back from last week's underwhelming performance in a 13-12 win against Kentucky.
The No. 1 Bulldogs and No. 4 Crimson Tide are set to kick off at 6:30 p.m. CT on Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Lane Kiffin has jokes for former boss Nick Saban during 'College GameDay' interview
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