Lane Kiffin earns hefty bonus for former team’s College Football Playoff victory
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Lane Kiffin turned out to be a big winner on Saturday even though he didn’t coach any games.
The Ole Miss Rebels defeated the Tulane Green Wave in the first round of the College Football Playoff. The Rebels’ victory gave Kiffin a $250,000 payday thanks to the terms of his departure from the program to take the LSU Tigers job.
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New LSU head coach Lane Kiffin speaks at the South Stadium Club at Tiger Stadium on Dec. 1, 2025. (Matthew Hinton/Image Images)
LSU agreed to pay its playoff bonuses if Ole Miss continued to win in the Playoffs, according to News Sports. If the Rebels manage to compete and win the national championship, Kiffin could receive a bonus of up to $1 million.
Ole Miss posted a 41-10 victory over Tulane. Rebels quarterback Trinidad Chambliss took a hit, but still managed to finish with three touchdowns in the win: two rushing scores and one passing touchdown.
Kiffin congratulated Ole Miss on its victory.
Tulane football coach Jon Sumrall, left, and Mississippi football coach Pete Golding meet before the College Football Playoff game, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025, in Oxford, Mississippi. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solís)
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“Congratulations to all the @OleMissFB coaches and players and especially to @CoachGolding for seeing both of your guys on the sidelines,” Kiffin wrote on X. “Big win today.”
It was Pete Golding’s first win as head coach at Ole Miss. With the pressure on Golding’s shoulders to step out of Kiffin’s shadow, he said it was helpful to have players who “really enjoy playing together and don’t want it to end.”
Ole Miss defensive coordinator Bryan Brown had high praise for Golding’s “boot.”
Lane Kiffin replaces Brian Kelly as head coach on December 1, 2025. (Matthew Hinton/Image Images)
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“He controls the room. He controls the narrative on anything he wants to control,” Brown said. “The guys believe in him just as they do defensively, and you can see that translates to our entire team. He’s just a great human being, a great coach, a great motivator… and he’s going to be a great coach for a long, long time.”
News’ Chantz Martin contributed to this report.
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Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor at News Digital.