As a kid, I used to play a lot of backgammon with my father. He used to beat me mercilessly. I could barely get a win in edgewise. There was no taking it easy on the kid.
As I was young and immature, I would whine about his seemingly endless winning streaks. He was a sore winner, which made me even more sore of a loser. I’d even go so far as to call him a cheater, in disbelief that he could beat me so consistently. After all, how can someone roll so many boxcars, winning game after game after painstaking game?
Eventually I came to the realization that he was just better than me. As I matured, I dealt with it like a gentleman. Backgammon might not be as cutthroat as Southeastern Conference football, but don’t tell that to my father.
The SEC recently welcomed a fresh new face to its head coaching ranks. Lane Kiffin, son of former Buccaneer defensive coordinator, filled the vacancy left by Phil Fulmer’s departure. And he brought his father with him.
Since taking over, Kiffin has done his best to rejuvenate Volunteer football which has struggled of late. At his first press conference, Kiffin went so far as to guarantee a victory over conference rival Florida in 2009. Smokey might be barking up the wrong tree. The last time Tennessee came to the Swamp, they lost 59-20.
Kiffin already has one early victory over Urban Meyer, albeit short-lived. In the recent recruiting battles, Kiffin nabbed wide receiver Nu’Keese Richardson who had previously verbally committed to UF. Once again, Kiffin decided to rub it in… publicly.
In front of a UT breakfast function Thursday, Kiffin said “I’m gonna turn Florida in right here in front of you. While Nu’Keese was on campus, his phone kept ringing. One of the coaches says, ‘Who’s that?’ And he said, ‘Urban Meyer. I love the fact that Urban had to cheat and still didn’t get him.”
In a feeble attempt at stand-up comedy, Kiffin explained to boosters and alumni that calling a high school athlete while he’s on another campus is an NCAA violation, which it’s not. While head coaches like to keep tabs on their blue-chippers, it is unlikely they have a GPS implanted on official campus visits.
The University of Florida wasted no time reacting to Kiffin’s flip allegations. Within hours, Athletic Director Jeremy Foley defended his golden fleece who had done nothing wrong, demanding a public apology. Not only did Kiffin later apologize, but he was reprimanded by the conference for his comments. SEC by-laws prohibit coaches from publicly criticizing other member institutions.
Steve Spurrier and Phil Fulmer jawed back and forth for a decade. They made Florida-Tennessee enjoyable on a national scale. While low blows may have occasionally been thrown, they never resorted to allegations of cheating, something that could bring a death knoll to any college program.
Meyer has never had the forked tongue of a Steve Spurrier. He’s never reacted vocally to such banter. He’d rather do his talking on the field. When Georgia’s coach Mark Richt encouraged his players to celebrate on the field after scoring their first touchdown in 2007, Meyer stored that away in his archives. The next year, Florida beat Georgia 49-10. In his four years at Florida, Meyer has yet to lose to Tennessee. In fact, Meyer’s gone 11-1 against Tennessee, Georgia and Florida State. He’s either cheating or he darn well knows how to coach.
Kiffin now finds himself in elite company, having to coach regularly against Les Miles, Nick Saban, Urban Meyer, Steve Spurrier, Bobby Petrino, Mark Richt, and Houston Nutt among others. While Kiffin has NFL head coaching experience, the Southeastern Conference is an entirely different animal.
In an effort to rekindle the fire that already exists between Knoxville and Gainesville, Coach Kiffin brought the wrong type of attention to UT. Chalk it up to inexperience. In light of Pat Summit winning her 1000th game, Phillip Fulmer’s honorable years of service and Bruce Pearl’s revival of UT basketball, Kiffin may want to pay closer attention to his peers. Eddie Fogler once accused Billy Donovan of recruiting violations. Eddie Fogler is no longer coaching in the conference while Donovan went on to win back-to-back championships.
So pencil in September 19 on your calendar. The Florida-Tennessee rivalry is already among the healthiest and most bitter in college football and Kiffin has just kicked it up a notch. Next year’s post-game handshake should be chillier than a Mangini-Belichick greeting. Jobs in major conference football are earned and lost based on how one does against their top rivals. Insert John Cooper reference here. Kiffin might want to hope he can back up his chatter otherwise it will be Meyer who once again has the last chomp.
