"Very discouraging outcome": Ole Miss HC Lane Kiffin reacts to the Rebels' unexpected Week 5 loss to Kentucky

After a brilliant start to the 2024 college football season, Lane Kiffin’s Ole Miss suffered a disappointing loss to Kentucky on Saturday. The Rebels were defeated 20-17 at home in their first SEC game of the season, leading to a dropout from the Top 10 in the AP Poll. They are now ranked 12th.

During his weekly Zoom media session on Sunday, Kiffin expressed disappointment in the team's inability to capitalize on key opportunities.

“Very discouraging outcome,” Kiffin said. "Really disappointed for our fans that I thought really showed up and really good energy in the second half as we took the lead. Just a win that we could’ve come away with. In all areas, we had different chances to do that.”

Lane Kiffin gives credit to Kentucky's defense

After blowing out all opponents in the non-conference schedule with an average of 55 points, Lane Kiffin's Ole Miss offense was put to test on Saturday.

Kiffin gave credit to the Wildcats' defense for their exhilarating performance in Oxford, ranking it among the best in college football. The coach cited the exploit of the defense in its previous game as proof of what Mark Stoops’ setup is capable of.

“I think that’s one of the premier defensive teams, especially front seven in college football,” Kiffin said. “You saw what Georgia did on offense last night to some really good Alabama players on defense and Georgia couldn’t get 300 yards against these guys.”

Lane Kiffin believes Ole Miss has to perform better

Ole Miss' performance against Kentucky on Saturday was largely disappointing, especially on the offense. Lane Kiffin believes that is unacceptable and the team has to improve on that in the upcoming games.

“We’ve got to perform better,” Kiffin said. “Obviously, there was more of a heavy dosage of pass early, which worked the first series just because of their play on defense and how tough they are to run between the tackles on.”

The Kentucky defense put on an impressive display, holding Ole Miss to season lows in nearly every statistical category. The Wildcats limited the Rebels to just 353 total yards, effectively stifling an offense that had been more productive in previous games.