“Tom Brady to Be the QB Coach”: NFL Fans Slam Fake Reports of Eli Manning Replacing Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss

The drama around Lane Kiffin’s future is intensifying. The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman reported that Ole Miss will hold a team meeting at 9 a.m. CT on Sunday, and that LSU remains confident Kiffin is preparing to head to Baton Rouge. According to Feldman, LSU has offered a seven-year deal worth roughly $100 million as they try to pry one of the most sought-after coaches in the country away from Oxford. In the middle of all this, a fake report managed to hijack part of the conversation on Saturday.

Florida and LSU have both pursued Kiffin aggressively in recent weeks, turning his decision into one of the sport’s biggest storylines. All this came less than 24 hours after Kiffin’s Rebels rolled Mississippi State 38–19 in the Egg Bowl, a win that all but locked Ole Miss into the College Football Playoff.

Despite being four wins from a potential national title, LSU sources continue to believe the combination of resources, recent championships, and the ability to recruit and physically compete with Alabama and Georgia will ultimately pull Kiffin south. Kiffin himself said Friday that he planned to announce his decision Saturday, acknowledging how difficult the choice has been.

“I feel like I’ve got to,” he said. “There’s a lot that goes into it. It’s a hard decision. You guys have them all the time. You’ve got to make decisions about jobs you take and where you move, and we get paid a lot, so I understand we’re under a lot of spotlight and scrutiny.”

Into that uncertainty stepped a parody account, which went viral after posting that Ole Miss had already chosen Kiffin’s replacement: none other than former Rebels star and NFL legend Eli Manning. The post claimed the university had a full transition plan in place and would move quickly to install Manning as head coach if Kiffin departed.

Fans immediately recognized the report as fake, but that didn’t stop the replies from turning into pure comedy. One user declared it “great news” before joking that Manning should appoint Danny DeVito as defensive coordinator. Someone else insisted that “Chad Powers was next in line,” while others took the gag further, suggesting, “Peyton Manning to be his OC. Tom Brady to be the QB coach.”

Another fan summed up the entire viral mess with a simple reply: “Here we go with the clickbait FAKE NEWS.”

Ultimately, the fake Manning report was just noise, but it highlighted the tension surrounding Ole Miss right now. The program is on the brink of a playoff berth, LSU is circling with a nine-figure offer, and Kiffin’s announcement is imminent. Until he makes that call, the Rebels, and everyone watching are stuck holding their breaths.