Lane Kiffin might be gone, but he's not forgotten at SEC Media Days.

Commissioner Mike Slive avoided mentioning Kiffin by name when talking about the coaching turnover in the league last offseason, taking a veiled shot at the former Tennessee coach who left for Southern Cal.

Slive called him simply, "Derek Dooley's predecessor ... who returned to his Western roots." There were muted laughs in the auditorium.

Slive followed by welcoming Dooley, the new Vols' coach, to the league, adding, "And when I say welcome, I mean welcome," emphasizing the final word.

Kiffin was a constant thorn in Slive's side during his brief tenure at Tennessee, committing a number of secondary recruiting violations and constantly pushing the envelope with his comments to the media. Slive issued Kiffin a public reprimand after he falsely accused Florida's Urban Meyer of a recruiting violation.

Meyer, no longer muzzled from talking about Kiffin, was asked Wednesday what his honest reaction was to news that Kiffin had taken the job at Southern Cal — where he was, what he did, if he high-fived anyone?

“I’ll let the commissioner handle that one,” Meyer said, smiling. “No comment.”