Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin explains 'popcorn' quote: 'Looks like we didn't plug in the microwave'

OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin instantly knew he'd made a mistake.

Seconds before opening kickoff in Ole Miss' 42-21 loss at No. 1 Alabama on Saturday, Kiffin granted a sideline interview to CBS reporter Jamie Erdahl. Kiffin punctuated the interview by telling America "get your popcorn ready," channeling the famous line from Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver Terrell Owens.

With hindsight, Kiffin thinks that might've been a mistake. 

"That was not premeditated," Kiffin said Monday. "Sometimes you get caught up in emotions. I just heard someone yelling in the locker room, someone saying that. I don't even know why it came out. I actually said to (offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby) on the headset 'I just said something really stupid. You better score a lot of points.' "

Kiffin said he also didn't realize that was the last question of the interview. He heard his coaches calling for the kickoff return team next to him and noticed there were about 30 seconds until the start of the game. 

Looking back afterwards, Kiffin said he thought his behavior looked rude.

"I contacted Jamie and knew she knew that was not on purpose," Kiffin said. "That was not done on purpose at all. It looked like it though. I saw it."

Kiffin carried the bit with him to halftime. With his Rebels trailing 28-0, Kiffin turned to Lebby and said "it looks like we didn't plug the microwave in, buddy."

Ole Miss (3-1, 1-1 SEC) is home Saturday (11 a.m., ESPN) against No. 13 Arkansas (4-1, 1-1).

Follow Nick Suss at @nicksuss on Twitter.