The Ole Miss Rebels and head coach Lane Kiffin, like everyone else in the country, are learning how to navigate the not-so-well-thought-out modern college football landscape.
Kiffin referred to the current college football landscape as a “dumb system,” largely due to the timing of the transfer portal and how that lines up with the college football postseason.
Ole Miss Rebels HC Lane Kiffin clarified what he meant when he said CFB has a “dumb system”

Kiffin responded to an X/Twitter post confirming his concern about the college football system. Kiffin is lamenting the fact that the transfer portal opens before the season is actually finished.
Tell us how you really feel, @Lane_Kiffin ! pic.twitter.com/HQilXYOl7x
— Paul Finebaum (@finebaum) December 11, 2024
Important to note that he is not complaining about something currently affecting Ole Miss. (bc he missed the playoffs).
But imagine the NFL has free agency start the week before the playoffs and end the week after the super bowl?
That is the current state of college football
— JP (@JPOleMiss) December 11, 2024
— Lane Kiffin (@Lane_Kiffin) December 12, 2024
Kiffin acknowledges the fact that his Rebels team is not affected by this in the same way that playoff teams are. With the new 12-team playoff in place, there are now 12 teams who have a massive wrench thrown into their transfer portal recruiting process.
If players want to transfer out of one of those 12 teams, they have to make their intentions known before the playoffs even happen to give themselves the best chance to find a spot in which they will succeed.
That means important backups, role players and sometimes even significant contributors have to choose between their own career and a run at a national championship.
SMU Mustangs quarterback Preston Stone is one of those players. He was the starting quarterback at the beginning of the season but was benched after an 18-15 loss to the BYU Cougars. Stone has stuck with the team and will continue to do so throughout the playoffs, but he has officially entered the transfer portal.
Stone is like a high school recruit, fielding texts and callers from coaches around the country. Yet, he is still expected to go out and put his best foot forward if he is called upon in the playoffs. Is there a conflict of interest if Stone does commit to another team before the playoffs is over? Can Stone be expected to properly prepare when he is essentially going through the recruiting process all over again?
Stone addressed the toughness of the bizarre process in an article from CBS Sports.
“It’s a little bit tough,” Stone said. “But I’ve had great conversations with (quarterbacks coach) D’Eriq (King) and Coach (Rhett) Lashlee way before I ever entered the portal and tried to do things the right way as it pertains to my teammates and coaches. I’m wanting to make sure I can finish the season with the team and still prepare for Penn State if and when an opportunity comes for me to play.”
If Stone is forced to come in and he completely lays an egg, there is no doubt that a conflict of interest will be called into question, valid or not. That is not an indictment on Stone or SMU, but rather the college football system as a whole.
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