Lane Kiffin plays the underdog, compares Ole Miss to the Green Bay Packers in the CFB world: "Not the biggest town, most alumni"

Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin is well known for his clever quips during press conferences and he came up with an underdog comparison that might not sit well with Ole Miss fans.

The Grove Collective had a giving day that raised up to $1.7 million for the program, according to On3 sources.

Lane Kiffin was effusive in his insistence that without the collective giving, a program like Ole Miss could not compete in the current college sports atmosphere.

He went ahead and made a comparison between Ole Miss and an NFL team, due to their supposed similar underdog standing.

"Extremely encouraged," Kiffin said. "I'm very real on good, bad, ugly. It's been awesome what the collective has done.

"I feel like Ole Miss is like the Green Bay Packers of college football, especially the SEC. Not the biggest town, most alumni. Them coming together like they have makes me think of Green Bay and shareholders with the team."

Earlier, appearing on the SEC Network's "Marty and McGee Show," Lane Kiffin was brutally honest about the attractiveness of the Ole Miss project to potential recruits.

"One, we don't have many kids that are dying to be here. They didn't grow up wanting to go to Ole Miss."

Kiffin further summarized the state of college sports.

"We're now moved toward that (NFL model) to where it is really business, and I would say the joy is not the same."

What Lane Kiffin thinks about NIL deals and the transfer portal

Lane Kiffin found himself in hot water earlier in the year due to his comments about the transfer portal and the NIL-rich environment in college sports.

“We have this NIL, it’s great, and this portal, it’s great. Whoa. And I’m not saying I was the only one saying it. Whoa, this is a disaster coming because you just legalized cheating and you just told donors they can pay the players is what you did.”

He changed his tune after the blowback from his comments and seems to have mellowed on the issue.

Kiffin sees the benefit of the current college sports system that allows student-athletes to enter the transfer portal and be eligible to play for a new program immediately.

"One good thing about it being broken is the players, and I've told them, it's a great time for them to capitalize on this."

Lane Kiffin has never been afraid to air his honest views on matters. His interviews are a breath of fresh air at a time when athletes and coaches are increasingly cautious and media-trained about what they say.