OXFORD — Lane Kiffin called it a "shame" that a negative quote about the Ole Miss football coach attributed to Nick Saban was published in a preview excerpt of an upcoming book.

The book, entitled "The Price: What It Takes to Win In College Football's Era of Chaos" and written by 247Sports reporter and former Alabama beat writer John Talty alongside best-selling author Armen Keteyian, recounts a phone conversation between the Alabama coach and Jimmy Sexton − an agent who reps both Kiffin and Saban.

The alleged call between Saban and Sexton took place when Kiffin was the offensive coordinator at Alabama, according to the excerpt, published originally on AL.com. Kiffin spent three seasons on staff in Tuscaloosa, beginning in 2014.

According to the excerpt, Saban was angry because Kiffin told him he didn't know what he was talking about during a meeting.

Saban denied having that conversation with Sexton during an appearance on the Pat McAfee show last week.

"He was asked about those comments, and, you know, I think it's a shame when people make comments and they write things with quotation marks and then the coach or the agent says they've never even spoken to the writer about that subject," Kiffin said Monday. "I think that was why he was kind of upset when they put those words to him or to Jimmy when both people say they never had that conversation with either writer."

Kiffin has often credited Saban with saving his career. Helping the Crimson Tide to the 2015 national title, Kiffin was hired by FAU in 2017 and won 27 games in three seasons. He parlayed that success into the Ole Miss job. He's now entering his fifth season in Oxford.

He never could secure an elusive win over Saban, though. Saban retired at the end of last season.

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"As time continued to go on, as you're further removed, adding more appreciation for Coach (Saban) and what he did for my career and taking a chance on me, and then what I learned from him over three years," Kiffin said. "Every day there's something that I pull from."

David Eckert covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at deckert@gannett.com or reach him on Twitter @davideckert98.

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This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Ole Miss' Lane Kiffin isn't happy about book's quote from Nick Saban