Lane Kiffin had us hitting refresh all day. Mark Stoops says ‘0% chance’ he walks. Kentucky has 0% chance of a bowl. And The Game makes people do crazy things — like headbutt referees, apparently.
Here’s the worst of Week 14 of the college football season in our Flop 10.
Lane Kiffin Watch
It was DEFCON LANE. Saturday was billed as Decision Day, per Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter’s declaration for post-Egg Bowl clarity regarding Kiffin’s future.
All day, Ole Miss and LSU fans, plus college football media types (with young families!) were held hostage waiting for news to break on whether Kiffin was heading to LSU or staying with Ole Miss. He heard he went to yoga, met with coaches to gameplan for potential SEC title game and then a meeting with Carter, which turned into a meeting also with the chancellor. By 9:30 p.m. ET, the reporting was Kiffin wanted to have his cake and eat it too: He wanted to leave for LSU but stay through the CFP. ESPN’s Marty Smith, who was staked out all day in Oxford, called it a ‘sticking point.’
And so I guess I’ll be stuck to my computer for another day.
Kentucky
That math was simple for Kentucky: Beat in-state rival Louisville, and the Wildcats would be bowl eligible. Well… Kentucky lost 41-0.
You want the bad news or more bad news? Mark Stoops was on a warming seat earlier this season, but back-to-back wins over Auburn and Florida cooled some of the exit talk — along with his $37 million buyout. But after losing big at home to Vanderbilt and then no-showing in its rivalry game against a Louisville team ravaged by injury, folks in Lexington may not be thrilled with Stoops saying, ‘0% chance I walk.’ It doesn’t help that UK alum Jon Sumrall is now the hot name on the coaching carousel being linked to nearly every SEC opening.
Nebraska
Nebraska fans, how ya feeling? The school felt compelled to give Matt Rhule a raise and extension after Penn State came sniffing around a gushing alum.
The Cornhuskers are 1-3 since Rhule signed his new deal. Some of that downturn can be attributed to Dylan Raiola’s injury, but Penn State managed to hammer the Huskers with a backup QB and an interim coach — an interim coach who Rhule gave his coaching start to.
Then Nebraska finished the regular season Saturday with a 40-16 home loss to Iowa, while rumors are swirling about Raiola’s future in Lincoln. Things are swell.
Jaishawn Barham
I was under the impression if you make contact with a referee, you’re done for the day. And if you headbutt a referee, you should be suspended. But Michigan standout defender Jaishawn Barham was only flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct.
Just dumb, and dangerous, considering YOU’RE WEARING A HELMET! The Game makes people do stupid things, but this was beyond stupid.
Florida State
To earn a bowl bid the Seminoles (5-7) needed a win Saturday over its floundering rival Florida, who is having an even worse season and already fired its coach. So naturally, the Gators (4-8) pummeled the ‘Noles, winning 40-21.
FSU administration has already rewarded Mike Norvell with another season, so missing a bowl game for the second straight year isn’t fatal. Though at a place like FSU, it should be. Norvell is 7-17 over the past two seasons, and it’s stunning he’s still there. A $58 million buyout is one helluva hard pill to swallow.
SMU
SMU, WYD? All you had to do was beat a Cal team that just fired its coach and you’d be in the ACC Championship game playing for a second straight CFP spot. The Mustangs lost 38-35 as SMU’s last-second field goal went wide right. You never go far right in Berkeley. Now, Duke (7-5, 6-2 ACC) will play Virginia in the title game.
A Duke win could be disastrous for ACC because there’s no guarantee the CFP committee takes Duke as one of the highest-rated conference champions. That may go to James Madison (11-1). Dukes > Duke. Oh, the intrigue!
Cal freshman QB Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele completed 31-of-40 passes for 330 yards and four touchdowns, showing why he’ll be very popular in the transfer portal, should he choose to enter.
Purdue
Purdue finished 2-10 in Barry Odom’s first season in charge, marginal improvement from last year’s 1-11 record that got Ryan Walters fired. It marks the first time since 1922-23 Purdue won two games or fewer in consecutive seasons.
The Boilermakers haven’t won a Big Ten game since 2023 and have lost 21 straight games against Power Four teams, the worst streak amongst power conference programs.
What magnifies Purdue’s futility is it coincides with Indiana’s back-to-back trips to College Football Playoff. At least Friday’s 56-3 loss was better than last year’s 66-0 Old Oaken Bucket defeat. Marginal improvement…
Bonus nugget: Vanderbilt reached 10 wins this season, meaning Purdue has the longest active streak among Power Four teams without a double-digit win season (1979). Go basketball!
Youngstown State
In Yale’s first FCS playoff game in program history, it trailed Youngstown State 35-7 at halftime. Then the Penguins froze as Yale scored 36 points in the second half — 29 unanswered — and flipped the script, winning Saturday’s FCS first round game 43-42.
‘It’s like a nightmare and you feel like you let a lot of people down,’ YSU coach Doug Phillips said afterward. ‘… We’ll carry that one a long time into this offseason… Gotta dig down deep, myself, staff, players, and figure out how you give up such a big lead.’
Harvard had no such luck in the Ivy League’s first foray into the FCS. The Crimson bled heavily, losing 52-7 to Villanova in its first round game.
UMass
The Minutemen lost to Bowling Green 45-14 on Tuesday to finish the season 0-12, the worst year in program history. UMass is the lone FBS team without a win this season, not a great start to coach Joe Harasymiak’s tenure. Back in the MAC for first time since 2015, UMass lost its games by an average margin of 27.5 points. The Minutemen last FBS win was Oct. 28, 2023, when it beat Army.
Baylor
Baylor needed a win to become bowl eligible and lost at home to Houston to finish 5‑7 in Year Six of Dave Aranda. Anyone else surprised this was Aranda’s sixth season? I guess that’s an indictment of the program’s recent mediocrity. His record in Waco is 36-37, and he got the assurance from his AD he’d return for 2026, an assurance that came with the disclaimer: ‘This decision will garner strong opinions.’
Here’s a fun, strong opinion from a worried Bears fan:
BONUS: Oklahoma State
One team that did make a coaching change, maybe should have just let Mike Gundy finish out the season. Because the Cowboys lost nine in a row after firing Gundy. It was so bad, they couldn’t even win coin tosses (2-10 this season). OSU finished 1-11 and 0-9 in Big 12 play after Saturday’s 20-13 loss to Iowa State. That’s two straight winless conference seasons and 19 straight league losses. Hopefully better days are ahead with North Texas coach Eric Morris set to bring his high-octane offense to Stillwater.
USA TODAY Sports reporter Jordan Mendoza contributed to this story.