I feel like the only possible downside is recruiting violations. What's the worst that could happen? We have a couple 3-win seasons. It's not like we're unaccustomed to that lol. This is all upside, and we'll be getting more media attention during the national championship game than ever before. If he leaves in a couple years, which he will, we'll have our choice of experienced coordinators currently in staff, or other young up and comers. 

I really struggle with the whole fraud thing…if he's guilty of being a bad coach it's for the Raiders fiasco when he was 31, had never been a head coach before and was one of many who weren't able to get them on track. 

Tennessee: he showed up full of pi$$ and vinegar, got the fans to absolutely adore his bravado, had a mediocre season and took a job with what was essentially his childhood team a year later. Hate to break it to the Tennessee fans but your school isn't a destination job for many.

USC: so he goes back to be head coach at the place where he cut his teeth, and during the negotiations he's told the sanctions for what Carroll did will be minor, nothing to worry about. He gets there and shortly thereafter they're hammered with penalties. Manages to win 10 games in each of his first two seasons, has a preseason #1 ranking and the lack of scholarships catch up to them. Has a mediocre start (something like 5-4) and they leave him on the runway. 

3 different qbs at Alabama, 3 losses in the time he was there. 

What program has he railroaded? His personality and style is the type of thing that'll be a great reason to love him when he's winning and fire him when he's not, just like anything else. Howard was a wise old sage when we were going to bowl games and all of a sudden the game passed him by in our eyes when we could only muster 2 wins. You think if Pelini was undefeated when he got busted in the Keys we'd have fired him? 

Lane has to prove he can be successful before he gets offered a big job, I think he holds out for a top tier job which gives us 3 seasons with him. If he leaves in that time frame, then we've killed it. The stars aligning scenario is Charlie was right and we lose 2 games next year, win CUSA and go bowling and Lane is scooped up. Best season of your lives as an Owl and we become the resume builder school where you can launch or resurrect a career? Sign me up.

I'm not worried about him leaving, especially if he gives us three winning seasons (and thus help us regain the credibility we had back in '08)

I accept that any coach we hire, Kiffin or otherwise, will leave for a better paying job if he's guided us to a winning season or three. A coach that stays for a decade here winning 7,8,10 games a year should be treated as the exception, not the rule.

What I'm unsure of is whether Kiffin and Co feel they need to push hard enough for top recruits that we get violations. Those reverberations stick around longer than the staff. Having a relatively drama-free class is important.