Kiffin Observation

Wondering how Lane Kiffin will do in Knoxville?

Here are some interesting observations from San Francisco Chronicle columnist Ray Ratto:

Whether Kiffin can succeed in air more rarefied than the sludge of the AFC West (trust us, far more people care about the Southeastern Conference) remains to be seen. The company around him is world-class fast - Nick Saban at Alabama, Urban Meyer at Florida, Mark Richt at Georgia, even Houston Nutt at Mississippi - and what he has proven as a head coach is mostly that he could irritate the boss.

He got a job in the NFL his experience didn't merit, and now he has one in the SEC that his NFL experience didn't merit, either.

Except that Tennessee fans are actually less forgiving than Raider fans, and he won't have a natural and target-rich foil like Al to play off this time. He will either build an SEC powerhouse in the teeth of more experienced men like Saban and Meyer and Richt and yes, even Nutt, or he will be run out of Knoxville with a vengeance that makes Al's overhead projector seem like a French tickler.

You can read the entire column here.