Officially entering Year 2 of The Sideline!

As I reflect on one full year of the newsletter, I’m excited about a few changes moving forward:

• Tuesday morning release

• Editions published every other week

• A focus on a handful of sports law stories (aiming for 4-7 shorter features)

• A new section, “Go deeper,” which provides outside sources and perspectives (could be legal analysis, a filing, or op-ed, etc.)

Thanks for bearing with me with as I take the remainder of 2025 to make these changes and transition to The Sideline 2.0.

My one belated birthday request would be to either (i) Share The Sideline by forwarding this email to someone who would enjoy it or (ii) reply to this edition with some feedback or any ideas you have for the future of the newsletter.

As always, I appreciate you for tuning in each week.

You’ll be hearing from me a little less often but I hope you continue to ride along the wild sports law journey we’ve been on for the past 52 weeks.

Hope you guys had a great Thanksgiving and see you on December 16th!

With gratitude,
Duggs

Lane Kiffin’s Seismic Move to LSU

In a move that shocked the sports world, head football coach Lane Kiffin is leaving Ole Miss to join SEC rival and neighboring state LSU on a 7-year, $91M deal.

Part of the deal? Kiffin won’t be able to finish the season with his 10-1 Rebels who are preparing for a National Championship run.

As information continues to be reported, it feels like a full-time job keeping up with headlines. My head turns just thinking about all the information I’ve seen over the past two days.

Something tells me there will be a Netflix documentary on Kiffin’s shocking move in the near future. “48 hours in Oxford” has a ring to it.

According to Kiffin, the now-LSU head coach:

• did not know for certain, until 30 minutes before a team meeting, that he would not be allowed to coach Ole Miss in the College Football Playoff

• did not know the numbers of his 7-year, $91M contract at LSU because he directed his agent Jimmy Sexton not to disclose the details

A few other eye-opening details regarding the Kiffin situation: