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What Lane Kiffin’s next 24 hours look like with Ole Miss, LSU, Florida decision to make

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What Lane Kiffin’s next 24 hours look like with Ole Miss, LSU, Florida decision to make


STARKVILLE — Ole Miss football coach Lane Kiffin is going to try to be a regular dad for a bit.

Then he’ll make the choice currently tearing him apart.

Ole Miss won one of the most important Egg Bowls in school history on Nov. 28. And yet, the next 24 hours may matter more to Ole Miss than what happened at Davis Wade Stadium.

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The No. 6 Rebels beat the Bulldogs 38-19. It’s the third consecutive Egg Bowl win for Ole Miss (11-1, 7-1 SEC), cements the Rebels as first-time CFP participants and erases MSU’s (5-7, 1-7) path to a bowl game.

The positive momentum in Oxford could be shattered in one day. It’s up to Kiffin, who said postgame he needs to decide whether to depart for LSU or Florida on Nov. 29. That’s been Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter’s deadline since last week.

“These are hard decisions,” Kiffin said. “You guys have them all the time. You guys (reporters) have to make decisions about jobs you take, where you move. All those things. We get paid a lot so I know ours is under a different spotlight and scrutiny but, you know, a lot of people that are critical of it are the same people that do it all the time.”

Lane Kiffin’s schedule before picking between Ole Miss, LSU or Florida

Kiffin was headed straight from Starkville to Tupelo. In his words, the most important game of his day kicks off at 7 p.m.

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Kiffin’s son, Knox, is starting for Oxford High in the MHSAA Class 7A state football. The game starts at 7 p.m.

Kiffin said he lives a day-to-day life. He’ll watch Knox play and leave the decision about his future until later. Sometime after that Kiffin will have to choose what offer to take.

LSU is a big brand with a recent national championship. Florida is where his coaching idol Steve Spurrier became a star, although reports indicated that the Gators are prepared to search elsewhere. Ole Miss is home.

Kiffin will become one of the sports highest-paid coaches regardless. Maybe $13 million, maybe closer to $15 million.

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He knows he can’t be just another dad watching his son in Tupelo. Other dads don’t have million-dollar salaries. Other dads don’t generate headlines with their family takes trips to Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Gainesville, Florida.

“In other professions it’s a little easier because you get to go to places,” Kiffin said. “You go for a week, see all the schools. The neighborhood and stuff. Then you make the decision. Our jobs are more difficult that way, but I’m not complaining about it.”

Kiffin said he’s found himself missing his father, Monte, who died in 2024. He posted a picture of him on social media on Nov. 27 with he caption “Hero.” He wishes he could ask his dad for advice for his looming decision.

Kiffin doesn’t waver from his early morning hot yoga. It’s likely one of the last things he’ll before his big decision. He has long said it’s the hardest thing he does each day. Until Nov. 21, when he told the Clarion Ledger that it hasn’t been lately.

“Yeah, usually,” Kiffin said Nov. 21. “For most people. Except when you’ve had days like mine lately.”

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Sam Hutchens covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at Shutchens@gannett.com or reach him on X at @Sam_Hutchens_



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Traffic stop goes viral after Florida deputy accuses driver missing right hand of holding phone

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Traffic stop goes viral after Florida deputy accuses driver missing right hand of holding phone


PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — Video of a traffic stop in Palm Beach County is going viral over an awkward exchange between the driver and a deputy who accused her of holding a phone while driving.

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“You drove past me holding a phone with your right hand, manipulating that phone,” the deputy tells 36-year-old Kathleen “Katie” Thomas.

“Obviously not,” Thomas says while laughing and holding up her right arm, showing that she’s missing her right hand.

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“So you wanna call this a day?” she asks.

“I don’t want to call this a day. You had a hand up, manipulating,” the deputy responds.

“You just said my right hand,” Thomas counters.

“Well, I thought I saw your right hand,” the deputy says.

“So you didn’t,” Thomas responds.

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Thomas posted the bodycam footage on Instagram and TikTok where it gained millions of likes.

In the video, although she shows the deputy she doesn’t have a right hand, the deputy doubled down.

“I’m asking you now; did you or not have your phone in your hand?” the deputy asks.

“I did not,” Thomas responds.

“You did not have your phone in your hand?” the deputy asks again.

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“I did not,” Thomas responds.

“Hand to God, you didn’t have a phone in your hand?” the deputy asks.

“Hand to God,” Thomas says.

Court records show Thomas was given a $116 citation despite the presented evidence, but it was later dismissed at the request of the deputy involved.

Copyright 2026 by WPLG Local10.com – All rights reserved.





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Blue Origin New Glenn rocket explodes on launch pad in Florida

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Blue Origin New Glenn rocket explodes on launch pad in Florida


A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket exploded Thursday night on a launch pad at Cape Canaveral in Florida. 

The explosion occurred at about 9 p.m. ET. Blue Origin said there were no injuries from the incident. 

“We experienced an anomaly during today’s hotfire test,” Blue Origin said in a statement. “All personnel have been accounted for. We will provide updates as we learn more.”

Cape Canaveral Space Force Station also confirmed in a separate statement that “all personnel have been accounted for and there were no injuries/fatalities.”

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A Blue Origin rocket explodes on a launch pad in Cape Canaveral, Florida. May 28, 2026. 

SPACEFLIGHTNOW


Blue Origin was scheduled to fuel the rocket Thursday evening ahead of a planned test firing of the rocket’s engines.

Blue Origin, which is owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, successfully launched its third New Glenn rocket last month.

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This rocket was being prepared for the fourth New Glenn mission as soon as June 4 to launch 48 satellites for Amazon’s Leo internet service, which competes with Elon Musk’s Starlink. 

The 48 satellites were not aboard the rocket during the test. It was not immediately clear how much damage the launch pad and ground equipment sustained, or how long it might take to repair it.

Space Launch Complex 36, where the explosion occurred, is the only launch pad equipped to launch New Glenn rockets.

The New Glenn rocket is key to Blue Origin’s and NASA’s moon base plans, and the explosion will likely be a setback. Next year, the New Glenn is supposed to launch another Blue Moon lander as part of the Artemis III mission in low Earth orbit.

In a social media post, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman wrote, “Spaceflight is unforgiving, and developing new heavy-lift launch capability is extraordinarily difficult. We will work with our partners to support a thorough investigation of this anomaly, assess near-term mission impacts, and get back to launching rockets.”  

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The New Glenn rocket had just been cleared on May 22 to return to flight after being grounded by the Federal Aviation Administration after an anomaly with the second stage during an April 19 launch.

In a statement Thursday, the FAA said it was aware that the rocket had “experienced an anomaly during a static fire test on the pad in Cape Canaveral, Florida,” adding that the “test was not within the scope of FAA licensed activities.”

The FAA also noted that “there was no impact to air traffic” from the explosion. 

Bezos wrote on X Thursday night, “It’s too early to know the root cause but we’re already working to find it. Very rough day, but we’ll rebuild whatever needs rebuilding and get back to flying. It’s worth it.”

Musk wrote: “Sorry to see this, I hope you recover quickly.”

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Florida to pay Sumrall’s assistants a combined $11.2M in 2026

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Florida to pay Sumrall’s assistants a combined .2M in 2026


GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida coach Jon Sumrall’s assistants will make a combined $11.2 million in 2026, a significant investment for a program desperate to win more often.

Offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner tops the list after signing a three-year, $6.6 million contract to leave Georgia Tech and join Sumrall in Gainesville. Faulker will get $2.1 million in 2026 – the first $2 million coordinator in school history – and has a $100,000 raise set for each of the next two years.

Only six college offensive coordinators were paid $2 million or more in 2025, according to CBS Sports. Fifteen defensive coordinators topped $2 million.

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Florida defensive coordinator Brad White signed a three-year, $5.85 million deal that starts at $1.85 million and also includes a $100,000 raise in 2027 and 2028.

The Gators released the contracts Thursday in response to a public records request.

Sumrall signed a six-year, $44.7 million contract last year that averages $7.45 million annually. The Gators will dole out more than $20 million to Sumrall, his staff of 15 assistants and a front office led by new general manager Dave Caldwell.

Four of the assistants are scheduled to earn at least $1 million during their deals.

Defensive line coach Gerald Chapman and offensive line coach Phil Trautwine will join Faulker and White in the seven-figure club. Chapman, the lone holdover from former Florida coach Billy Napier’s staff, will make $950,000 this year and $1 million in 2027. Trautwine, meanwhile, starts at $750,000 and jumps to $1 million. Both signed two-year deals.

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Their salaries show Sumrall’s commitment to rebuilding the team along both lines of scrimmage in the powerhouse Southeastern Conference.

Napier’s 12-man coaching staff was paid a combined $7.5 million in 2025. The Gators posted three losing seasons in Napier’s four years.

The rest of Sumrall’s staff range between making $350,000 and $600,000 annually, all of them on two-year contracts.



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