Kiffin gets death threats . . . burns bridges sted of couches

The SEC Expats are outraged: Lane Kiffin says he got death threats when he announced his move from Tennessee to USC. Read and watch here.

What kind of country are we living in?

Given the graceful way Kiffin handled his exit . . .

Given the joy he brought to all of us by skirting away at the end of recruiting season like a Willy Wonka dance away with him . . .

Given the high character he displayed upon his entrance into Knoxville, and the respect he showed not only to the traditions of Tennessee but to his SEC peers . . .

Given his almost obsessive adherence to the NCAA rule book . . .

Given how he crossed gender lines to mentor Tennessee coeds, helping them develop their full potential by utilizing their inherent marketing gifts . . .

Given the classy way he dealt with defeat and the sanctity of competition, the high-minded way he kept his wits while all around him were losing theirs . . .

Given all that . . . well, we're just shocked, shocked! that Kiffin's departure drew extreme reactions of any kind.

Good thing he continues to stick to a diplomatic note, pointing out to ESPN's Shelley Smith that USC fans didn't burn couches when Pete Carroll left, which proves that the Family Trojan has a tighter grip of how football fits into the larger world. A couch, after all, is a terrible thing to waste. That's why USC fans buy furniture for all those neat houses USC players receive. And think about this: Those benefits -- the cars, the condos, the cash -- and all the hours and manpower needed by the NCAA to track them down puts Americans to work. USC is its own stimulus plan.

By comparison, Rocky Top is more backward. How else do you explain that in all the years of UT football, the coaches never stripped to their waists and jumped around bumping bare chests with kids while screaming profanities! That's archetypal!. Kiffin made that happen.

Without him, Tennessee would have never gone 21st century with its use of coeds on the recruiting trail. And who can criticize the way Kiffin manned up and faced his players to explain his departure (even with the major distraction as his assistant feverishly in the back of the room called recruits to regale them on the advantages of a USC education.)

This, as Tom Wolfe might put it, is "A Man in Full."

Full of it, indeed.

mg