A Coach's Claim: Road Rage or Fan Fury?

Lane Kiffin, the new coach for LSU, recently made a bold statement during his first press conference in Baton Rouge. He claimed that a fan from his previous team, Ole Miss, tried to force his car off the road while he was heading to the airport. Kiffin suggested that fans only act this way when they are upset about a coach leaving, especially if that coach was doing a good job. He pointed out that fans wouldn't go out of their way to yell or cause trouble if the coach wasn't successful. This is a serious accusation. If true, it should be looked into and dealt with properly. Fans can be passionate, and sometimes that passion turns into anger. But is this the right way to handle it? Kiffin could have waited before making his move. After all, LSU is paying him a lot of money, and they likely would have waited for him. The fact that he wanted to stay and finish the playoff run with Ole Miss suggests that LSU would have been patient. But maybe Kiffin knew that Ole Miss wasn't going to let him stay. By using the school's position as an excuse, he might have been trying to soften the blow of leaving the Rebels in a tough spot. If that was his plan, it didn't work. Ole Miss fans are still upset. Whether one of them was angry enough to try to run Kiffin off the road is unclear. It's possible we'll never know for sure.