Layla Kiffin Denies SI Swimsuit Rumor

In the minutes after he was hired at Tennessee, Lane Kiffin's wife, Layla, shot to the forefront of Google search results. At the time she was pregnant with her third child. None of that mattered. Vol fans, and college football fans across the country, were immediately amazed with how far Lane Kiffin had outkicked his coverage. Layla's good looks and Lane's recruiting offered tangible proof, if any was needed, that my theory -- the hotter the wife the better the recruiter -- was gold.

Now, having delivered her third child, rumors swirled Friday morning that Layla would be posing for Sports Illustrated's swimsuit issue. As first reported by the Sports Animal radio station in Knoxville, the rumor swept the Internets and sent pulses racing and subscription rates surging in the Tennessee Valley. Alas, it was not to be. "Absolutely not true," said Tiffany Carpenter, director of UT public relations.

Indeed, Layla has not even been approached by anyone at Sports Illustrated about posing in their swimsuit issue.

If the reaction on Friday is any indication, SI might want to reconsider that position.

Already, pictures of Layla tailgating at the UCLA game have taken the Internet by storm. Not to mention the thousands of people who joined the Facebook group, Our Coach's Wife Is Hotter Than Your Coach's Wife. To say that Layla Kiffin is an Internet phenomenon doesn't do the term justice. Let's just say I don't think she would need to pull a Mrs. Roger Clemens and take HGH before the shoot.

If she did choose to don a swimsuit for the issue, Layla would immediately become Lane Kiffin's most public recruiting tool. Come to Tennessee, you might end up with a woman who looks like this. Even if, you know, Layla is actually a Gator grad and the daughter of a former Gator quarterback.

Lil Wayne better hit the studio, he's got a new track to drop.

In the meantime, keep dreaming Vol fans. And, if the shoot does materialize despite present denials, hope that Terrence Cody doesn't step in front of the camera lens at the last possible moment.