Report: Alabama Interviewing Lane Kiffin To Lead Offense
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (CBSMiami) – The University of Alabama is searching for a new offensive coordinator and may turn to a coach with quite an infamous reputation, though the school has a history of doing that with head coach Nick Saban.
According to ESPN's Joe Schad, Saban will interview former University of Southern California head coach Lane Kiffin for the vacant offensive coordinator position. Kiffin was at the school recently to observe practice and Saban said he "had a tremendous amount of respect for him (Kiffin)."
The last time Kiffin was seen on a college sideline, he was walking off the field after his Trojan team was destroyed by the Arizona State Sun Devils in September. Kiffin put together a 28-15 record with the Trojans as they were trying to navigate through tough NCAA sanctions.
Kiffin's resume is checkered after he was one of the youngest coaches ever in the NFL. His tenure with the Oakland Raiders ended in a very ugly manner with bad accusations coming from both sides. He took the head coaching job at Tennessee, but would leave after less than a year for USC.
The Trojans were expected to compete for a championship in Kiffin's next to last season, but the team fell apart quickly and never recovered through his dismissal late last season.
Saban has said he's "intrigued" by an uptempo offense because of the problems it causes defenses. Saban's vaunted defense has been torched by uptempo offenses at Texas A&M and Auburn in the last two seasons.