Agent of chaos: Lane Kiffin fed Dabo Swinney intel, egged him on to publicly attack Ole Miss over tampering

Adapted from Lane Being Lane: The Story of Lane Kiffin, College Football's Agent of Chaos by John Talty to be published by Harper, Sept. 15, 2026. The first book on the most polarizing coach in college sports, Louisiana State University football coach Lane Kiffin, charts his inexorable rise and his impact on the game, as he left a trail of winning teams, bad feelings, and controversy in his wake.

You can order a copy of Lane Being Lane here. Signed copies of the book are also available for order here.

Lane Kiffin came off like a man who badly wanted revenge on Ole Miss, but everywhere he turned he was rebuffed. Eventually, he found a target: Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney.

Swinney had just lost talented Cal transfer linebacker Luke Ferrelli to Ole Miss despite his signing with the Tigers and even going to classes on Clemson's campus. Ferrelli, the ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year, took a visit to Ole Miss before signing with Clemson, but the Rebels didn't have a spot available for him.

That changed when LSU convinced Ole Miss linebacker T.J. Dottery to enter the portal and transfer to LSU. Ole Miss pivoted back to Ferrelli…

Original source: https://www.cbssports.com/