Kiffin could put a staff together with SEC ties
November 6, 2008 8:30 AM
Posted by ESPN.com's Chris Low

One of the names almost certainly to be on Tennessee's short list in its coaching search is former Oakland Raiders coach Lane Kiffin.


Kiffin
Clemson and Washington are also possibilities for the 33-year-old Kiffin.

One of the attractions with Kiffin is that he would likely bring his father, Monte, with him. The elder Kiffin is the defensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and one of the most respected defensive minds in all of football.

The rest of Kiffin's staff could have a distinctive SEC feel to it. He and former Ole Miss coach Ed Orgeron worked together when Kiffin was the offensive coordinator at Southern California, and Kiffin would almost certainly try to bring Orgeron with him as a defensive assistant and recruiting coordinator. Orgeron is now on the New Orleans Saints staff.

When Orgeron was at Ole Miss, he hired Kiffin's younger brother, Chris, to be a graduate assistant on the Rebels' defensive staff.

Somebody else with SEC ties to look for on Kiffin's staff would be Tim Davis, who's the director of player personnel at Alabama under Nick Saban. Davis was Saban's assistant offensive line coach with the Miami Dolphins. Prior to that, he spent three seasons on the Southern California staff alongside Kiffin and coached the Trojans' offensive line.
Chris Low