Mr2Bits
Gator Fan
<em>"Friends all tried to warn me
But I held my head up high
All the time they warned me
But I only passed them by
They all tried to tell me
But I guess I didn't care
I turned my back and
Left them standing there -
All the burning bridges that have fallen after me
All the lonely feelings and the burning memories
Everyone I left behind each time I closed the door
Burning bridges lost forevermore"</em>
Those lyrics from the theme song of one of the all-time classic movies, "Kelly's Heroes", describe Lane Kiffin perfectly.
Judging by the latest happenings at USC, it looks as though the scourge of Lane Kiffin won't be disappearing anytime soon from the world of college football - and the burning bridges are still falling behind him.
<img src="http://assets.espn.go.com/media/motion/2010/0113/dm_100113_ncf_kiffin_pressconf.jpg" alt="Kiffin" />
It's obvious that no matter where Kiffin seems to go, trouble follows; although when he took the reins of the Trojan football program over from Pete Carroll after he returned to the NFL he walked back into a mess that was already under investigation by the NCAA (in case anybody doesn't know, Kiffin was part of Carroll's staff when the incidents involving Reggie Bush took place). Even though his tenure at Tennessee lasted all of one year, it wouldn't surprise me to see any possible wrongdoings on his part that could be uncovered by the NCAA during the 2009 season eventually disclosed to the public.
To my readers from Gator Nation, pardon me if I'm preaching to the choir a little bit when I say that Kiffin had an agenda practically from day one when he took the Vols job over from Phil Fulmer last year, as evident by that "singing Rocky Top all night long after we beat Florida" crack in his opening speech that would eventually backfire on him, as well as that gaffe he spewed wrongly accusing Urban Meyer of cheating while contacting a recruit during authorized time. Steve Spurrier, Nick Saban and Mark Richt weren't immune from his baiting, either. As irritating as it was to see Kiffin send the SEC into an uproar last season, I'm glad he was made to look ridiculous when he was defeated by Florida and Alabama; as the cliche goes, what goes around comes around. <strong>Twice</strong> he was publicly reprimanded by SEC Commissioner Mike Slive for conduct unbecoming of his position as a head coach. Even more immature and unsportsmanlike was Kiffin's refusal to graciously concede defeat to Frank Beamer and Virginia Tech following Tennessee's loss in the Chick-Fil-A Bowl this past winter.
As much as the USC athletic department may deny it, I'm in agreement with <em>Gator Country's</em> Buddy Martin in that this latest episode involving incoming Trojan freshman Dillon Baxter reeks of Lane Kiffin shenanigans, as per a recent article he wrote. Given the schools allegedly accused of illegally contacting Baxter, in dissecting the matter and the list of schools cited Buddy's right - I've already mentioned Kiffin's beef with Meyer and Saban in the previous paragraph, I also detect a hint of jealousy towards Oregon in their having gone to the Rose Bowl last January, an attempt to start stirring the pot with now-Washington head coach and former USC offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian, and a grudge against his alma mater Fresno State for a lack of success on the football field while he was playing there. Reading between the lines, it's as plain as the nose on one's face that Lane Kiffin instigated the trouble and used Baxter as a pawn - and don't try and convince me otherwise. Though USC's athletic director Mike Garrett was obliged to write letters of contrition to each of the athletic directors of the wrongly accused schools, in my honest opinion it's a lame gesture on his part - <strong>KIFFIN</strong> should be the one personally apologizing to Urban Meyer et al, along with providing an explanation for why he chose to once again behave as inappropriately as he did.
Already the backlash from the Reggie Bush scandal and the subsequent probation with sanctions handed down by the NCAA is taking its toll on USC; recently top-ranked recruit Seantrel Henderson was released from his letter of intent and has now committed to the Miami Hurricanes, also, other players currently on the roster have transferred or are considering transferring out in light of the penalties levied against the program, with the NCAA waiving the one-year waiting period for eligibility in the cases of juniors and seniors who do. If it seems that the fickle finger of fate is being pointed at Lane Kiffin right now so be it, but it'll take a lot more for him to cease the immaturity and buffoonery that has already ruined his reputation. Once he realizes that he has made a total fool out of himself with all the gaffes and silly stunts, and that he has burned way too many bridges behind him, it'll be too late. It probably won't be very much longer before we hear the <em>next</em> Kiffin gaffe.
Too bad Lane, even your daddy Monte won't be able to bail you out.
Indeed, burning bridges lost forevermore.
But I held my head up high
All the time they warned me
But I only passed them by
They all tried to tell me
But I guess I didn't care
I turned my back and
Left them standing there -
All the burning bridges that have fallen after me
All the lonely feelings and the burning memories
Everyone I left behind each time I closed the door
Burning bridges lost forevermore"</em>
Those lyrics from the theme song of one of the all-time classic movies, "Kelly's Heroes", describe Lane Kiffin perfectly.
Judging by the latest happenings at USC, it looks as though the scourge of Lane Kiffin won't be disappearing anytime soon from the world of college football - and the burning bridges are still falling behind him.
<img src="http://assets.espn.go.com/media/motion/2010/0113/dm_100113_ncf_kiffin_pressconf.jpg" alt="Kiffin" />
It's obvious that no matter where Kiffin seems to go, trouble follows; although when he took the reins of the Trojan football program over from Pete Carroll after he returned to the NFL he walked back into a mess that was already under investigation by the NCAA (in case anybody doesn't know, Kiffin was part of Carroll's staff when the incidents involving Reggie Bush took place). Even though his tenure at Tennessee lasted all of one year, it wouldn't surprise me to see any possible wrongdoings on his part that could be uncovered by the NCAA during the 2009 season eventually disclosed to the public.
To my readers from Gator Nation, pardon me if I'm preaching to the choir a little bit when I say that Kiffin had an agenda practically from day one when he took the Vols job over from Phil Fulmer last year, as evident by that "singing Rocky Top all night long after we beat Florida" crack in his opening speech that would eventually backfire on him, as well as that gaffe he spewed wrongly accusing Urban Meyer of cheating while contacting a recruit during authorized time. Steve Spurrier, Nick Saban and Mark Richt weren't immune from his baiting, either. As irritating as it was to see Kiffin send the SEC into an uproar last season, I'm glad he was made to look ridiculous when he was defeated by Florida and Alabama; as the cliche goes, what goes around comes around. <strong>Twice</strong> he was publicly reprimanded by SEC Commissioner Mike Slive for conduct unbecoming of his position as a head coach. Even more immature and unsportsmanlike was Kiffin's refusal to graciously concede defeat to Frank Beamer and Virginia Tech following Tennessee's loss in the Chick-Fil-A Bowl this past winter.
As much as the USC athletic department may deny it, I'm in agreement with <em>Gator Country's</em> Buddy Martin in that this latest episode involving incoming Trojan freshman Dillon Baxter reeks of Lane Kiffin shenanigans, as per a recent article he wrote. Given the schools allegedly accused of illegally contacting Baxter, in dissecting the matter and the list of schools cited Buddy's right - I've already mentioned Kiffin's beef with Meyer and Saban in the previous paragraph, I also detect a hint of jealousy towards Oregon in their having gone to the Rose Bowl last January, an attempt to start stirring the pot with now-Washington head coach and former USC offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian, and a grudge against his alma mater Fresno State for a lack of success on the football field while he was playing there. Reading between the lines, it's as plain as the nose on one's face that Lane Kiffin instigated the trouble and used Baxter as a pawn - and don't try and convince me otherwise. Though USC's athletic director Mike Garrett was obliged to write letters of contrition to each of the athletic directors of the wrongly accused schools, in my honest opinion it's a lame gesture on his part - <strong>KIFFIN</strong> should be the one personally apologizing to Urban Meyer et al, along with providing an explanation for why he chose to once again behave as inappropriately as he did.
Already the backlash from the Reggie Bush scandal and the subsequent probation with sanctions handed down by the NCAA is taking its toll on USC; recently top-ranked recruit Seantrel Henderson was released from his letter of intent and has now committed to the Miami Hurricanes, also, other players currently on the roster have transferred or are considering transferring out in light of the penalties levied against the program, with the NCAA waiving the one-year waiting period for eligibility in the cases of juniors and seniors who do. If it seems that the fickle finger of fate is being pointed at Lane Kiffin right now so be it, but it'll take a lot more for him to cease the immaturity and buffoonery that has already ruined his reputation. Once he realizes that he has made a total fool out of himself with all the gaffes and silly stunts, and that he has burned way too many bridges behind him, it'll be too late. It probably won't be very much longer before we hear the <em>next</em> Kiffin gaffe.
Too bad Lane, even your daddy Monte won't be able to bail you out.
Indeed, burning bridges lost forevermore.
