When it comes to talking Auburn football, at this point in time all roads eventually lead to the coaching search. Since even before Bryan Harsin was relieved of his duties mid-season, fans were clamoring for the next coach, and the clock has been ticking.
While many names have been thrown into the mix, in the past few weeks current Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin has dominated the conversations. He was identified by most of the Auburn beat writers as the #1 target, and rumors have been flying about the circumstances surrounding the potential move.
It was reported earlier this week by Jon Sokoloff that Kiffin planned to step down as the Rebs’ head coach and take the position at Auburn following the Egg Bowl, Kiffin adamantly denied it and Thursday came and went with no announcement.
According to Phillip Marsh of Auburn Undercover, the original plan was for the university to announce the new head coach today, on the eve of the Iron Bowl:
"Auburn’s desire was to announce their new coach today, ahead of Saturday’s Iron Bowl. The way that would happen would be for Kiffin to arrive in Auburn, meet with athletics director John Cohen and probably others, and sign the contract."
However, now things have gotten dicey. Apparently, Kiffin’s kids have made a strong push for him to stay in Oxford, and there has been a major push in the Ole Miss NIL department in an effort to get him to stay. But is Kiffin in too deep at this point to backtrack?
It’s likely that at this point, an official announcement will come the day after the Iron Bowl. Although anything could happen, and a big announcement could come right before Auburn football heads into their biggest game of the season, it would probably be best to keep the excitement focused on Cadillac and the team before returning attention back to the coaching search on Sunday.