Lane Kiffin criticizes Wake Forest for removing Ole Miss from its 2025 schedule

Wake Forest was humiliated at home by No. 5 Mississippi 40-6 in its Week 3 game. There will be no rematch in Oxford next season, which annoys head coach Lane Kiffin.

“It’s kind of an unwritten rule that you don’t do that, really,” he told reporters Monday after learning that Wake Forest had canceled next year’s game. The ACC school reportedly paid the $1 million buyout clause to get out of the rematch scheduled for a decade ago.

“That’s rarely the case,” Kiffin continued. “I’ve never really heard of that, and it really puts us at a huge disadvantage. That’s just the way it is. Obviously, they didn’t appreciate putting us in that position.”

The game was scheduled for Sept. 13, 2025. Mississippi now has to scramble to find another opponent for that date, which won’t be as easy as it sounds, according to Kiffin.

“Now you have to find someone and most people already have a schedule,” he said, expressing frustration. “And even when you find someone, you have to go and pay them.”

According to ESPN, if Mississippi can’t find another opponent in the Power 4 conference, it will have to file a waiver request with the SEC to play four non-conference games, all in the Group of Five or FCS. That’s something Kiffin would rather avoid.

“It’s not what we want to do, but they may have put us in an unavoidable situation to not do it,” he said, expressing his displeasure with the timing of Wake Forest’s cancellation.

“I find it really incredible that you wait until the week of the game to tell the team,” he said, visibly frustrated.

Wake Forest’s cancellation is part of what appears to be an early trend of non-SEC power conference teams trying to avoid the giant programs south of the Mason-Dixon Line. West Virginia is actively trying to avoid its scheduled games with Alabama in 2026 and 2027.

Mississippi has started its 2024 campaign 3-0 and is in serious contention for the SEC title as well as the expanded College Football Playoff.

The Rebels will face Georgia Southern at home in Week 4, likely looking at their first 4-0 start since 2022.