This time it appears official. Lane Kiffin's tenure at Alabama is ending after three entertaining seasons.

That part isn't surprising, the destination -- FAU -- might not have been the expected landing spot after his name was connected with several jobs.

So, the never-boring Kiffin coaching career will head to south Florida as the career rebuild continues.

Kiffin has a 35-21 record in five seasons as a head coach with Tennessee and USC. He was fired by the Trojans during the 2013 season.

Nick Saban said last week that Kiffin was "absolutely" ready to be a head coach again.

"I think he has proven when he was a head coach he had a reasonably good amount of success -- much more than I think he gets credit for," Saban said before the SEC Championship. "And he's done a phenomenal job in the three years that he has been with us relative to taking the players that we had and actually molding a system, especially for the quarterback to be successful in and I think those are signs of tremendous maturity as a coach who is just not committed to a system but is committed to doing the things he has to do to help players be successful."

Alabama went 39-3 during Kiffin's time as offensive coordinator, winning three SEC titles and advanced to three playoff appearances.

The Kiffin-Nick Saban pairing few could have predicted began in December 2013. Alabama was preparing for the Sugar Bowl with Oklahoma in the wake of a stunning, now iconic Iron Bowl loss at Auburn. Kiffin had been fired as USC's head coach that fall after going 28-15 in four seasons in Los Angeles.

It began as a consulting job that turned into an offensive coordinator interview when Doug Nussmeier left for the same job at Michigan. Kiffin was hired Jan. 10, 2014 in a sign times were changing as the twice-fired head coach entered what amounted to career rehab in the Alabama football complex.

Saban wanted to move the offense forward while doing the same with defense. Times were changing and the critics said Saban wasn't shifting adequately.

Under Kiffin, there was considerable evolution.

Three different quarterbacks led three unique offenses in Kiffin's time here.

Blake Sims was the surprise winner of the 2014 quarterback derby, leading Alabama to a No. 1 ranking in the first College Football Playoff. The first experimentation with hurry-up offense took advantage of Sims' athleticism while featuring Heisman finalist Amari Cooper.

A year later, Jake Coker won the job as Derrick Henry powered the offense to a Heisman Trophy and national title. There were hurry-up elements, though the offensive identity became the bruising running game and the program's single-season leading rusher.

The biggest challenge came in Year 3. Jalen Hurts became the first Alabama true freshman starting quarterback in decades and the first to come close under Saban. Alabama's first undefeated regular season since 2009 required Hurts to be a dynamic running quarterback with at least a threat to throw down the field.

From the beginning, all eyes were on Saban and Kiffin sideline interactions. Cameras caught a few heated moments in the first month of the 2014 season, leading to questions for Saban. He disagreed with the assumption the two weren't getting along.

"Nobody thought it was a good hire that all of a sudden something bad," Saban said Sept. 23, 2014. "I don't know. I thought it was a good hire. Nobody else did. Now, I got beat up like a drum for doing it and now all of a sudden it's great."

Saban never indicated any changes in that dynamic as heated discussions would continue on the sideline. Late in a Week 2 win over WKU this season, Saban gave Kiffin what he referred to an "ass chewing" that was captured by ESPN cameras.

There were two highly-anticipated returns to Knoxville where Tennessee fans still hold a grudge for the abrupt 2009 departure for USC. Kiffin left little doubt with a 34-20 win in 2014 and a 49-10 beating this October.

There was talk this day would come sooner than now. After the 2014 season, there were rumblings of a return to the NFL and the 49ers, though he released a statement through Alabama stating his commitment to the 2015 season.

And there were funny moments like the time the team bus left Kiffin at the stadium after winning the national title game in January. He laughed off a Comedy Central parody of his life before the 2015 Sugar Bowl in his second time talking to reporters since landing the job. And he cracked jokes about Saban's height at an awards ceremony that fall.

Ultimately, he coached two Heisman finalists and the 2015 winner in Henry. His offenses broke school yardage records and produced the school's single-season leader in passing yards (Sims), receiving yards (Cooper) and rushing yards (Henry).

Still, his Alabama legacy likely will be how he finishes while juggling a playoff run and launching his second chance as a college head coach. Kirby Smart handled it well enough for the Tide to win a national title after he took the Georgia job last December.

Now it's Kiffin's turn to close his unlikely Alabama run with all eyes on the final act.