As a Tennessee alum, I knew I had to post something on PRettySocial about Lane Kiffin’s departure from UT football. However, while I love football and the Vols, I wasn’t the one for the job. So this morning, I bring you a guest post from PR pro & sports fanatic, Mike Schaffer…

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When I heard that Lane Kiffin was bolting from his position of head football coach at the University of Tennessee, as a non-alum and not even much of a college football follower, I thought “Wow, this moves around as much as Jay Leno!”

And after his refusal to answer questions at his final press conference in Tennessee, he came across looking like a jerk.  (In the industry, we call that a PR FAIL! Even when the answers may be uncomfortable or worse, you must address the issue at hand.)

However, to all the Volunteers out there, DO NOT WORRY!

Let me count the ways:

1. He was there one year.  Steve Spurrier lasted longer as the Washington Redskins coach.  And Washington completely forgot that era of awfulness.  He will be a nugget in the glorious history of Volunteer football.
2. Sure, the Vols made it to a bowl game.  But it was the Chick-Fil-A Bowl.  That restaurant isn’t even open on Sundays.  And they lost.  Seriously, though, it’s not like he set the world on fire.  The team competed, but  were not in the upper echelon of the NCAA.
3. His record was only 7-6, and 4-4 in the SEC.  Read: He’s no Bear Bryant…not even a Vince Dooley.  Nick Saban had infinitely more impact in the conference than Kiffin.  UT will find a coach that is interested in being the coach of UT…not someone that wants to coach everywhere but where he currently is.
4. He flopped horribly in the NFL.  After finishing 4-12 in his first year, Al Davis WROTE a letter of resignation for him to sign.  Seriously, if Al Davis thinks you aren’t worth it…enough said.  (For the record, Kiffin survived that off-season, but was axed with a combined NFL record of 5-15.  And filed a lawsuit.  Brilliant!)
5. While he was an NFL coach, he was rumored to be interested in college jobs.  He made it to the top of the mountain and couldn’t handle the heat.   Let’s face it, USC is THE football team in Los Angeles, the #2 market in the country.    Every move he makes will be scrutinized by the media.  And it won’t be pretty.
6. Throughout his coaching career, rules violations have followed him around.  In just one year at Tennessee, he registered numerous NCAA violations, mostly on the recruiting side.  Furthermore, USC is under some hot water right now, that is about to boil, so Kiffin will have to deal with that mess.
7. At USC, Kiffin will be replacing a LEGEND in his prime in Pete Carroll.  Sure, USC’s best days may have been a few years back, but Carroll was going nowhere.  What sane person would want to do that?  Sure, Carroll caused a lot of the trouble that Kiffin will be dealing with, but he is beloved on campus.

There you have it – 7 Reasons to Forget Lane Kiffin.  There’s ALWAYS a next year.

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Mike Schaffer is the Director of Social Media for BWF Communications in Washington, DC.  He is the author of The Buzz by Mike Schaffer and founder of #SportsPRChat on Twitter.  Through his career in sports PR, he was worked with NFL, MLB, ATP, PGA, NCAA, NHL and WNBA teams, leagues and active and retired athletes.   Follow him on Twitter.