Lane Kiffin has not coached a single game at FAU yet, but he has done plenty to bring extra scrutiny to the program. Kiffin is known for his recruiting skills, and he is already capturing the attention of the college football world with his initial efforts at his new program. He’s even trying to get people to recognize FAU as the new LSU: Last Strike U.
The play on words comes from Kiffin’s latest successful attempts to recruit players from East Mississippi Community College, which was featured in two seasons of the Netflix documentary series Last Chance U. Among the recent additions from the show to FAU’s roster are Last Chance U stars (and former major-conference players) John Franklin III, DeAndre Johnson and Tim Bonner.
Kiffin’s “Last Strike U” moniker is in response to the criticism Kiffin has received by welcoming in so many transfers the way he has, including some with checkered backgrounds before arriving at FAU. Knowing he is acquiring talent from such questionable backgrounds, Kiffin is attempting to draw a firm line to say if anyone messes up, they will be out of options going forward.
It’s one thing to say these things, but it’s another to enforce them. Hopefully, for Kiffin’s sake, he will not be presented with the situation in which he has to play tough on his players, but he has opened the door to scrutiny already at FAU. Actually, the door was already open. Kiffin just wedged a doorstop underneath the door to keep it from closing.
Keep in mind Kiffin has already added Kendal Briles to his coaching staff. Briles, the son of former Baylor head coach Art Briles, was connected to the Baylor football sexual assault scandal. Kiffin has stood by his coaching staff decision to keep Briles on the staff, even as details about his involvement have become public. Now, Kiffin continues to raise eyebrows with his roster management.
It is Kiffin’s job to do whatever he can to build the FAU program and win football games. These former Last Chance U players may play a key role in helping Kiffin restore his head coaching pedigree. If it does not work out, however, it could be Kiffin who finds out that FAU is his own Last Strike U.