On Wednesday, Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin accused Texas Tech linebacker Dimitri Moore of spitting at a black Ole Miss player and yelling a racial slur during the TaxAct Texas Bowl. Now Moore is denying the allegation.
After Texas Tech Raiders trounced the Ole Miss Rebels 42-25, coach Kiffin claimed that Moore delivered a racial epithet early in the fourth quarter. Then, on the tail of the Raiders recovering an Ole Miss fumble, a short shoving match broke out between players, and Rebels wide receiver Jordan Watkins was handed a personal foul penalty when it all broke up.
But Moore denies the accusation, according to the New York Post.
“I can’t state strongly enough that these accusations are false,” Moore said in a statement. “It is disappointing to have my final game as a collegiate student-athlete overshadowed by the false accusations stated Wednesday night.”
“Since I have arrived at Texas Tech, I have strived to represent my teammates, this coaching staff and most importantly, my family, in the highest manner. It has been an honor to represent this program as we closed our season with a great team victory last night,” Moore added.
Kiffin, though, quickly jumped to blame Moore after the game.
Head coach Joey McGuire of the Texas Tech Red Raiders and Head coach Lane Kiffin of the Mississippi Rebels shake hands at NRG Stadium on December 28, 2022, in Houston, Texas. (Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
“There was a racial slur involved, that’s not the point of what we’re talking about, (it’s) about the spitting part,” the Ole Miss coach explained after the game. “I brought our own 71 up to the officials, right or wrong, you see him crying? He’s not crying not because he got spit on, it’s because something was said.”
Asked later if he might soften his accusation, Kiffin refused and doubled down.
“I’m not going to, because I did not hear it, (I’m not going to) say that that happened for sure that he gave a racial slur to our player. I was told that that was said in that (incident), but I did not hear that. So that would obviously be a giant issue,” he said.
The victory for Texas Tech gave them a season-ending record of 8-5 in their first year under head coach Joey McGuire, while Ole Miss ended its season with the same 8-5 numbers under the leadership of coach Kiffin.
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