Lane Kiffin makes joke at expense of Ezekiel Elliott, Ohio State
Lane Kiffin couldn’t resist taking a jab at his old counterpart, Urban Meyer.
The Alabama offensive coordinator was talking about Heisman Trophy tailback, Derrick Henry, and how he would be involved against Michigan State in the Cotton Bowl. Instead of just following the by-the-book approach that Nick Saban usually does with the media, Kiffin went off the script.
And he took a shot at Ohio State in the process.
Kiffin mentions Michigan St faced Ezekiel Elliott. "Hopefully we give the ball to Derrick more than they did. … Kidding. That's a joke."
— Stewart Mandel (@slmandel) December 27, 2015
The game in which Kiffin was referring to was of course Ohio State’s loss to Michigan State. Elliott only had 12 carries for 33 yards, including just two in the second half. That led to Elliott blasting the play-calling and declaring for the NFL draft, which naturally created a stir of its own.
Kiffin should know how talented Elliott is. He did only get 20 carries when Ohio State took on Kiffin’s squad in the College Football Playoff semifinal. But those 20 carries went for 230 yards and two scores.
Kiffin had probably intended on talking about the job Michigan State’s defense did containing a back like Elliott, who like Henry, is one of the nation’s top backs.
But given Kiffin’s reputation for spouting off, a comment like that likely won’t be dismissed by Buckeye fans.