David Billiot Jr
Podcaster/Writer
David has spent the better part of his life in Madisonville and loves all things Louisiana. Specifically, he bleeds LSU, Saints, and Pelicans. Whether it’s the purple and gold or black and gold that he’s covering, his mission is to break down baseball and football in a way for the most casual of fans to understand and enjoy. Sports in the Boot are amazing and he feels as if everyone down here should have the opportunity to enjoy them to the fullest.
BATON ROUGE - LSU needed a strong response after last week's overtime loss to Kentucky, and the Tigers delivered one Saturday afternoon in Death Valley. No. 22 LSU shut out No. 16 Mississippi State 31-0, using an efficient passing attack and a dominant defensive performance to get back on track in SEC play. The victory moved the Tigers to 5-2 overall and 2-2 in conference play. Leavitt Delivers His Best Performance Quarterback Sam Leavitt led the way for LSU, completing 31 of 38 passes for 289 yards and four touchdowns. More importantly, he finished without an interception for the first time this season. Leavitt connected with nine different receivers, showing the kind of balance and confidence LSU needs from its passing game moving forward. Jackson Harris was his favorite target, finishing with six catches for 85 yards and two touchdowns before leaving the game with an apparent lower-leg injury in the third quarter. Eugene Wilson III and Malik Elzy also caught touchdown passes as the Tigers found ways to move the ball through the air. Running back Dilin Jones contributed 84 rushing yards on 18 carries, helping LSU maintain balance on offense. The Tigers built a 21-0 halftime lead and never allowed Mississippi State to find its footing. Defense Set the Tone While LSU's offense deserves credit for its performance, the defense was equally important in securing the shutout. Mississippi State finished with 291 total yards, but struggled to turn promising drives into points. The Bulldogs repeatedly moved into LSU territory, only to come away empty-handed. LSU stopped Mississippi State on all five of its fourth-down attempts, including a critical stand near the goal line in the first half. Those stops prevented the Bulldogs from gaining momentum and kept the Tigers firmly in control. Safety Ty Benefield also recorded an interception, while the defensive front applied pressure throughout the afternoon. It was the kind of complete defensive effort LSU needed, particularly against a ranked conference opponent. A Much-Needed Response The biggest takeaway from Saturday's performance is how LSU responded to adversity. After falling to Kentucky 35-34 in overtime, the Tigers had an opportunity to show how they would handle a disappointing loss. They answered with a convincing victory against a ranked opponent and played with the urgency needed in SEC competition. There is still work to do as LSU moves deeper into its conference schedule, but this performance offered plenty of positives on both sides of the ball. The Tigers will look to build on that momentum next Saturday when they travel to face Auburn. Maintaining the efficiency Leavitt showed against Mississippi State and continuing to make key defensive stops will be important as LSU tries to climb the SEC standings. For now, LSU can take confidence from a performance that showed what this team is capable of when its offense and defense work together.
BATON ROUGE - LSU will have an opportunity to get back on track Saturday when Mississippi State visits Tiger Stadium for an SEC matchup that carries plenty of importance for both teams. The Tigers are coming off a disappointing 35-34 overtime loss to Kentucky, a game that left little room for error as they continue working toward their postseason goals. Mississippi State, meanwhile, enters the matchup at 4-1 after a bye week, looking to respond to a 56-23 loss to Alabama. LSU is 4-2 on the season and 1-2 in SEC play, while the Bulldogs are 4-1 overall and 2-1 in conference action. With both teams looking to make a statement, Saturday presents an important opportunity for the Tigers to protect their home field. LSU's Offense Has an Opportunity to Get Back on Track Quarterback Sam Leavitt and the LSU offense will be one of the biggest storylines heading into Saturday's game. The Tigers have been productive offensively, averaging approximately 525 yards per game. Leavitt has thrown for 1,496 yards and 10 touchdowns, while also providing a running threat with seven rushing touchdowns. However, turnovers have been an issue, with Leavitt throwing eight interceptions this season. LSU cannot afford to give Mississippi State extra opportunities, particularly with the Tigers looking to regain some consistency after the loss to Kentucky. The Bulldogs have struggled against the pass, allowing 247.4 passing yards per game. That could create opportunities for Leavitt to attack through the air, especially if LSU can establish its running game and keep Mississippi State's defense from focusing entirely on the passing attack. Mississippi State's Quarterback Situation Bears Watching Mississippi State's offense could look different depending on the availability of quarterback Kamario Taylor, who is listed as questionable with a lower-body injury. Taylor has been one of the Bulldogs' most important players, leading an offense that has averaged 487 yards per game. His status will be worth monitoring leading up to kickoff. Running back Fluff Bothwell is also questionable after suffering an injury against Alabama. If either player is unavailable, Mississippi State could have to rely more heavily on its depth. Wide receiver Anthony Evans III remains an important player to watch. He has recorded 40 receptions for 574 yards and five touchdowns, making him a key target for the Bulldogs. Defense and Turnovers Could Decide the Game LSU's defense will need to take advantage of any uncertainty surrounding Mississippi State's offense. Forcing the Bulldogs into difficult third-down situations and limiting explosive plays will be important, especially early in the game. The Tigers also need to finish drives. Moving the ball between the 20-yard lines is encouraging, but converting those opportunities into touchdowns is what separates productive offenses from winning ones. LSU has won the last three meetings between these programs, including a 41-14 victory in 2023. The Tigers will look to continue that trend Saturday. Prediction LSU has the offensive talent and home-field advantage to win this matchup, but the Tigers must play with greater consistency. Protecting the football, establishing the run and taking advantage of Mississippi State's passing-defense struggles should be priorities. After a frustrating loss to Kentucky, LSU needs a complete performance. Saturday is an opportunity to show that the Tigers can respond to adversity and keep their SEC season moving in the right direction.
LSU heads on the road for their second SEC game of the season. Their first trip ended in a 32-24 loss in Oxford to Ole Miss, but this game against Kentucky has significantly less big game connections. While there is a lot of influence involving a lot of former LSU influence, it’s certainly not the grand affair that we saw in week 3. The Tigers come in as the #10 team in both the AP and Coaches polls with their record of 4-1 (1-1 SEC). They jumped back in to the top-10 following Florida’s blowout loss at Missouri, which plummeted the Gators in the polls. Kentucky also comes in at 4-1 (2-1 SEC) having beat Texas A&M and South Carolina for their two conference wins. They’re ranked #24 in the Coaches Poll, but dropped two spots from #24 to unranked in the AP, despite their road overtime win over the Gamecocks. LSU offense vs. Kentucky defense Both sides of the ball are fairly large mismatches for the Tigers, at least on paper. LSU comes in with the 3rd ranked total offense in the entire country, averaging 547.8 yards per game. That’s #1 in the SEC. Their 43.6 points per game ranks 9th in the country, 4th in the SEC. It’s been a struggle-fest at times for the Wildcat defense. Jay Bateman is in his first season as Kentucky defensive coordinator after coming over from Mike Elko’s staff in College Station. They are allowing 376.6 yards per game, which ranks 92nd in the country and 13th in the SEC. They’ve given up a lot of points at 26.8 per game, which is 101st in the country and 13th in the conference. Lane Kiffin and Charlie Weis Jr’s offense has moved the ball both through the air and on the ground. They average 310.2 yards per game passing and a whopping 237.6 yards rushing per game, which is music to LSU fans’ ears after the struggles to run the ball under Brian Kelly and former OC, Joe Sloan. Both of those numbers are top-15 in the entire country and rank 2nd and 3rd in the conference, respectively. Bateman’s 4-2-5 defense are ranked 13th against both the pass and run, allowing 232.4 yards per game through the air and 144.2 yards on the ground. They also allow 20.8 first downs per game, which is 105th in the entire country and that makes them vulnerable against a Kiffin team that is picking up 28.2 per game, 2nd most in the country. The biggest advantage that LSU’s offense will have is their 3rd down offense against Kentucky’s 3rd down defense. The Tigers are #2 in the SEC, converting 3rd downs at a 51.9% rate. On the other side, the Wildcats are near the very bottom in all of Division 1, allowing a 45.9% rate for opposing offenses on 3rd down. They’re ranked 122nd out of 138 teams, which is last in the SEC, clearly. Not being able to get off of the field against a Kiffin/Weis offense is probably a death sentence. Offensive coordinator, Charlie Weis Jr, is a mastermind at designing plays and calling them at the right time. He helps guide LSU to enough success as it is, so squaring off against a defense that’s so susceptible is great for the purple and gold. Look for less big shots down the field early and for LSU to attack the Kentucky defense with short, quick pass plays to mix in with the run. The goal could be to get to 3rd and short, knowing you’re better at converting those opportunities. I would expect a lot of Dilin Jones and even Harlem Berry after his performance the last two weeks. The main thing that the offense has to do is protect the ball. The Wildcats best advantage is how often they turn opposing offenses over, averaging 2.0 per game, which is 15th in the country. We’ve seen Sam Leavitt’s struggles with protecting the ball at times, so this will have to be his cleanest game in that area to secure the first LSU road SEC win of the season. LSU defense vs. Kentucky offense Blake Baker and his unit have been masterful. There’s no other way to put it. They rank 2nd in the country and 1st in the SEC, allowing just 220.6 yards per game. Their 15.2 points allowed per game is 15th overall and 3rd in the conference.They’re at the top in 1st downs given up with just 11.6 per game and are 2nd in the country with their 22 sacks. Kentucky’s offense has been improving fairly rapidly, especially from what we saw in years past under Mark Stoops. Former Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein is in his first year as head coach for the Wildcats and has them ranked 54th in the country and 9th in the SEC with 416.8 yards per game. Their 34.6 points per game is 49th overall, 10th in the SEC. The aforementioned Joe Sloan is now in Lexington as the offensive coordinator, but it’s Stein’s offense and he’s calling the plays. Baker’s unit ranks 2nd in the SEC against both the pass and the run. LSU allows 162.2 yards through the air and just 58.4 on the ground per game, which are both absurd numbers. Especially the opposing rushing numbers. Princewill Umanmielen leads the country with his 8 sacks with freshman Deuce Geralds not far behind at 5 and quickly chasing down Harold Perkins Jr’s freshman record. While improved, neither of Kentucky’s attacks on offense jump off of the page. They’re picking up 229.6 yards per game through the air and 187.2 yards on the ground, which are 11th and 6th in the conference, respectively. Their rushing offense is definitely their best, having multiple running backs with over 300 yard rushing through 5 games. CJ Baxter is their go-to with 5.3 yards per carry, but they also love Jason Patterson who has a whopping 7.9 ypc. The other names to remember with the LSU connections is Kenny Darby and Nic Anderson. Darby is a true freshman, who was a long-time commit to the Tigers with Brian Kelly. When Kiffin took over, Corey Barber Jr flipped from Ole Miss to LSU and that seemingly took Darby’s spot, forcing him to follow Sloan to Kentucky. He leads the team with 25 receptions for 322 yards and 3 touchdowns. Anderson was a Tiger last year and while he has a modest 9 receptions for 120 yards and a touchdown, he’ll certainly be motivated. The other two guys to watch in Stein’s offense are tight ends Willie Rodriguez and Henry Boyer. They have a combined 30 receptions for 310 yards and 4 touchdowns. The Wildcats love to use both. Final prediction While Kentucky has played well, pulling the massive road upset at Texas A&M as 17-point underdogs, I still have a hard time seeing them matchup against this LSU team. The Tigers offense is starting to hum, especially on the ground, which is what Kiffin loves to do. I believe that the 3rd down matchup on that side of the ball will tell the tale of this game. If the conversion rates look similar to what they do heading in to the game, the Tigers could run away with it. On the other side, quarterback Kenny Minchey has looked solid. His 11/1 touchdown to interception ratio is really good, but he’s been sacked 11 times. Against the 2nd best pass rush in the country, that could spell doom for the Wildcat offense, making it hard for them to hold on to the ball as their defense struggles to get off of the field. LSU - 31 Kentucky - 13
BATON ROUGE -- No. 11 LSU did exactly what it was supposed to do Saturday night — and then some. The Tigers dominated McNeese from the opening whistle, rolling to a 63-14 victory inside Tiger Stadium while putting together one of the most productive offensive performances in school history. LSU finished with 731 yards of total offense , the second-most in a single game in program history. The Tigers also ran 101 offensive plays, setting a new school record. For head coach Lane Kiffin, though, the night was about more than piling up points against an FCS opponent. Kiffin Wants LSU Playing Its Standard LSU led 35-0 at halftime and had every reason to take its foot off the gas. Kiffin chose not to. When asked about using a running clock in the second half, Kiffin said LSU needed to continue playing its game. “You play the game and we decide when the game’s over, by the way that we play, and how physical that we play,” Kiffin said. That mentality showed up throughout the night. Even with the game firmly in hand, LSU continued to play with energy and gave plenty of younger players valuable snaps. Kiffin said the number of plays was particularly important because the Tigers will need that depth during the stretch ahead. “A lot of snaps for guys,” Kiffin said. “The goal was to get (that up) to evaluate those guys because they are going to need to play with the injuries we have down the stretch.” Offense Finds Plenty of Contributors Quarterback Sam Leavitt completed 18 of 23 passes for 176 yards and three touchdowns, while Corey Barber Jr. caught two touchdown passes. The running game was just as impressive. Harlem Berry rushed for 125 yards and a touchdown, while Stacy Gage added 110 yards and two touchdowns. Five different Tigers — Berry, Dilin Jones, Gage, Landen Clark and freshman defensive tackle Deuce Geralds — scored rushing touchdowns. Geralds' touchdown was particularly memorable. Kiffin joked afterward that he had checked with LSU historian and former Tiger Anthony “Booger” McFarland to determine whether anyone had previously recorded a sack and offensive touchdown in the same game. Kiffin said Geralds now holds the record outright. After a 35-6 victory over Texas A&M last week, LSU has now put together back-to-back dominant performances. The competition gets much tougher from here. But Saturday night showed that LSU has plenty of players capable of making plays — and Kiffin is making sure they understand the standard doesn't change simply because the opponent does. LSU is 4-1 and now turns its attention to Kentucky next Saturday on the road.
BATON ROUGE - LSU gets a chance to do something Saturday night that it hasn't been able to do much of this season: take a breath. The Tigers return home for their final non-conference game of the season when McNeese comes to Tiger Stadium. After last week's 35-6 win over Texas A&M, LSU enters the game 3-1 and ranked No. 11 nationally. On paper, this is the kind of game LSU should control, but that's not really the point. The Tigers have bigger things to figure out before SEC play takes over the schedule again. Keep Building The win over Texas A&M was important for LSU because it showed what this team can look like when everything is working together. The defense dominated. The offense was efficient. And, maybe most importantly, LSU looked like a team that had moved on from the loss at Ole Miss. But now, the Tigers have to do it again. McNeese isn't going to present the same challenge Texas A&M did, but that doesn't mean Saturday is meaningless. LSU needs to take care of business, clean up some of the things that have bothered it through the first four games and get ready for the part of the schedule that actually matters. Because after Saturday, the Tigers begin a stretch of seven consecutive SEC games, and there isn't much room for error once that starts. The Injuries Matter The biggest question surrounding LSU right now might have very little to do with McNeese; it's health. LSU has taken some significant hits defensively. Whit Weeks is out after suffering a broken leg against Texas A&M, while Charles Ross II and safety Dashawn Spears are also done for the season. Tight end Trey'Dez Green remains out, and quarterback Sam Leavitt's status bears watching after he dealt with a hamstring issue last week. That's a lot of experience and production missing from a team that still has plenty of football ahead of it. Saturday should give LSU an opportunity to see what some of its younger players can do, which is very important. You don't want to get to the middle of October, lose another starter and suddenly find out the player behind him has never played meaningful snaps. McNeese Can Make this Uncomfortable McNeese enters the game 2-3, but the Cowboys aren't coming to Baton Rouge simply to collect a check. They beat East Texas A&M 27-24 last week and ran for 210 yards in the game. Running back Omiri Wiggins is a player LSU will need to keep an eye on. He rushed for 116 yards last week and has already broken off touchdown runs of 74 and 75 yards this season. LSU should have too much talent for McNeese, but that doesn't mean the Tigers can afford to be sloppy. If LSU handles the first quarter, establishes the run and lets its defense dictate the game, this should become the kind of night where the coaching staff can get some younger players on the field. The Bottom Line This isn't the game that will define LSU's season because the games coming after it will. LSU needs to continue building on what it did against Texas A&M, avoid adding to its injury list and give some of its younger players valuable experience. Most importantly, the Tigers need to leave Tiger Stadium feeling like they're ready for what's next because after McNeese, there won't be another break. SEC play is coming. And that's where we'll really find out what this LSU team is.
Returning home after a furious comeback effort in Oxford fell short, LSU was looking to notch their first SEC win under Lane Kiffin. They were welcoming the Texas A&M Aggies, who were also coming off of a loss in their conference opener. Both losses were very much different, though. The Tigers lost on the road to a top-10 Ole Miss team in what was one of the most anticipated regular season games in recent history. Kiffin’s return turned that game in to a spectacle and even if not for the extra flair, it was still a road loss to a good team that made it to the College Football Playoff semi-final last year with the best quarterback and running back in the country. The Aggies, on the other hand, fell to Kentucky as 17-point favorites at home. That’s right, the Wildcats in just their fourth game under new head coach, Will Stein, walked in to Kyle Field and dominated Texas A&M 31-21. They out-physicaled Mike Elko’s team, who prides themselves in physicality. Loser of this game was going to be in big trouble. Suffering a second loss before the calendar turns to October would be devastating. LSU seemed to be in better shape coming in, but Marcel Reed was coming to Tiger Stadium with all of the confidence in the world with what he did in this matchup for the past two years. It was this very game in 2025 that became an Aggie blowout, emptying Death Valley and eventually getting Brian Kelly fired the next day. Blake Baker’s capabilities were being called in to question, as ridiculous as that sounds. LSU needed this one and was relying on Sam Leavitt to bounce back after a shaky performance in week 3. He faced an extra hurdle in this one, but one that Kiffin joked afterwards, actually may have helped him. 1st quarter flow For the third straight game, LSU’s first possession ended in a 3-and-out. Texas A&M took over and when Marcel Reed scrambled for 12 yards on the first play, shades of the past two years quickly arose. Thankfully, the Tiger defense locked in to force a quick punt after just one first down. Taking over at their own 18, that’s when Sam Leavitt and the offense went to work. Big plays of 19, 36, and 15 yards helped set up a 1 yard touchdown run by Dilin Jones on a direct snap. After another Aggie 3-and-out, Leavitt made one of his only mistakes of the night. On a 3rd down scramble in which he easily had the first down, he slid too early and Lane Kiffin chose to punt. Reuben Owens started the Texas A&M drive with a 16 yard run, but that would be all, leading to the third punt of the opening quarter. LSU would answer with a 3-and-out of their own. A 16 yard pass from Reed to Mario Craver on 3rd and 14 extended their next drive as the quarter came to an end. 1st quarter summary Despite the one touchdown drive, the Tigers left quite a few opportunities on the field. It was clear early that they were the better team, but some rustiness out of the gates seemed to prevent them from getting off to too hot of a start. On the other side, Blake Baker’s gameplan for Reed was off to a great start. Each team punted the ball 3 times in the quarter, but LSU had outgained Texas A&M 101-55. 2nd quarter flow Following the big 3rd down conversion to end the quarter, the Aggies put together their one really good drive of the night. They gained 5 first downs and looked poised to tie the game when Reed scrambled with a clear path to the endzone, but a shoestring tackle by PJ Woodland tripped him up. After a 1st and goal from the 7 yard line, Baker’s defense bowed up and forced the short field goal attempt. David Olano booted a 24 yard field goal to make it a 7-3 game. When the Tigers got the ball back, Leavitt found Jackson Harris for a big gain of 26 to start the drive. Although that would be their only first down, something else of significance happened. On a 3rd and 12, Leavitt scrambled, but came up gimpy as he ran out of bounds. Grant Chadwick punted the ball away for the fourth time, but it appeared as if Kiffin’s quarterback was hampered. The defense forced another 3-and-out and LSU took over at their own 17 yard line with just over 4 minutes in the half. It became the Leavitt to Winnie Watkins drive, as the two connected on passes of 35 and 36 yards. On just the seventh play of the drive, Harris came down with an acrobatic touchdown catch to cap off the 83 yard drive that took just 2:21 off of the clock. Although Reed was able to find Isaiah Horton for a big gain of 27 to get across midfield, a holding penalty brought them back and Mike Elko chose to head to halftime down 14-3. 2nd quarter summary Both offenses were able to get a little more going in the 2nd quarter, but only LSU was able to find the endzone. Texas A&M dominated time of possession with 10:09, but only came away with 3 points to show for it. Leavitt was starting to get warmed up and in rhythm with both Harris and Watkins, but the concern was his injury. Although he stayed in the game, going to sit for 15-20 minutes at halftime is always something to watch. 3rd quarter flow The Aggies received the opening kickoff of the second half, but on a short 3rd and 3 to start the drive, Tamarcus Cooley blitzed Reed for a sack to force another 3 and out. Tyler White continued his stellar night of punting, booting a 58 yard punt that flipped the field from their own 21 to the LSU 21 yard line. After a first down, the Tigers faced a 3rd and 1 near midfield. Jones got stuffed for a no gain, bringing up a 4th and 1 from in their own territory. Kiffin later said that he was strongly considering a punt with how well the defense was playing, but at the last second, he remembered who he is and why he was brought to LSU. To make things happen. LSU lined up in their tight, direct snap package that they’ve shown through three and a half games, but just before the snap, Jones and Leavitt casually shifted over. The quarterback took the snap and Harris snuck through the entire Texas A&M defense that had crashed for the run. Leavitt hit him in stride with no one within 20 yards and the Tigers were in full control at 21-3. Facing an immediate 3-and-out, Elko decided to go for it on 4th and 1 from their own 34 yard line. Davhon Keys, in for an injured Whit Weeks, burst through the hole and stuffed Carsyn Baker to force a turnover on downs. With their best starting field position of the night, Leavitt and the offense were looking for the knockout blow. They never faced a 3rd down, getting down to the 8 yard line with a 1st and goal. Following an incomplete pass, Landen Clark came on to the field for 2nd down. It had become clear that while Leavitt could throw, he wasn’t going to be able to run. No problem, because Clark juked a Texas A&M defender out of his cleats at the line of scrimmage and jetted around the left side to make the Aggies pay for their desperation decision. It was 28-3 and the Tigers were rolling. Badly needing something to go his way, Reed was sacked on the very first play of their drive by Princewill Umanmielen for a loss of 17, which effectively ended that drive. Fortunately for them, Leavitt was intercepted on the very next play after Sam M’Pemba got a piece of his arm on his throw, causing the ball to flutter right in to the waiting hands of Marcus Ratcliffe. With the ball in LSU territory for the first time in the second half, the Aggies picked up a few yards on a run, but followed with back-to-back incompletions. Looking for anything to go their way, Texas A&M opted for a 53 yard field goal by Olano, which he nailed to make it 28-6. Charlie Weis Jr’s offense came right back out in turbo mode, once again not facing a 3rd down all drive. Completions of 15 yards to Watkins and 36 yards to Harris quickly got the Tigers in to the redzone where they cashed in, yet again. It was Clark for the second time, coming in to the game on the goal line to run a QB keeper to extend the lead to 35-6. The night full of miscues continued for Texas A&M when Rueben Owens II called for a fair catch on the kickoff, but muffed it, downing the ball at their own 1 yard line. Carsyn Baker broke for a 10 yard run to give them some breathing room as time expired in the 3rd quarter. 3rd quarter summary Straight up domination is the only way to describe the start to the second half for LSU. They outscored Texas A&M 21-3 and outgained them 181 yards to just 17. Baker’s defense really ramped up the pressure on Reed, sacking him 3 times. Leavitt was clearly hobbled and basically throwing off of one leg, but somehow looked as good as he ever has while passing the ball. The sequence of the 4th and short Harris touchdown reception and the Aggies turning the ball over on downs in their own territory was essentially the end of the game. 4th quarter flow After the nice run to end the 3rd quarter, Texas A&M quickly found themselves with a 3rd and 15 from their own 6 yard line when Rees scrambled to his right and tried to force a ball in to coverage. Cooley made a nice catch on the sideline and kept his feet inbounds at the Aggie 19 yard line, then the secondary celebrated with the infamous Yell Leader dance right in front of the Yell Leaders. After getting down to the 8 yard line, LSU had to settle for a Scott Starzyk field goal attempt after Zach Grace dropped a sure touchdown. Shockingly, he missed the 24 yard chip shot. Reed’s struggles continued with more incompletions and more pressure. They waived the white flag when they punted on a 4th and 2. Landen Clark was back out for his second full drive after taking over following the Cooley interception, this time joined by Harlem Berry who was finally getting some opportunities. He looked good, notching runs of 18, 14, and 17 yards on the final few drives. Backup Aggie quarterback Brady Hart entered the game and was picked off on his first attempt by Michael Turner Jr. Clark, again, got the Tigers down inside of the 10 yard line, but once again was let down by his receiver. As time was running down, Kiffin let the offense throw the ball on 4th and goal, but Brown dropped an easy ball that hit him right in the numbers. Texas A&M took over and ran the ball once to let the time expire as LSU won 35-6. 4th quarter summary With this game being over in the 3rd quarter, this was mostly an opportunity for some of the 2’s, which rarely happens in an SEC game. Clark got to run the full offense for a few drives and Berry got some much needed carries. After not seeing any offensive snaps until the 4th quarter in any game so far in 2026, he moved up to RB2 and was also in the game earlier. With Stacy Gage unable to do much in that spot, Berry may have the chance to take hold of the backup job directly behind Dilin Jones. Although there was no scoring in the 4th quarter, the Tigers still managed to gain 99 yards of offense and 5 1st downs. Their 10:16 time of possession to close the game finally put the Aggies out of their misery. Final summary Lane Kiffin and his staff could not have asked for a better bounce back performance from his team. He mentioned in his post game interview that while last week may have been Ole Miss’s super bowl, it wasn’t theirs. They felt as if they blew a chance to complete a nice comeback and quickly turned their attention to Texas A&M. Aside from some first half miscues, the offense played very well, especially behind the arm of Sam Leavitt. That’s the first time this season that we’ve been able to credit his throwing more than his running. The injury turned out to be a slight hamstring pull, which he and Kiffin both revealed in post game pressers. He stated that he will be perfectly fine, but with a giant mismatch against McNeese coming this weekend, there’s a good chance that Leavitt and others get the week off to rest. With some of the other major injuries that LSU has already sustained, they have to play it safe. As for the defense, Blake Baker shut up every single doubter. The narrative that he can’t stop a mobile quarterback came to a screeching halt with his unit holding Marcel Reed to -13 yards rushing. Following the confusing soft coverage against the Rebels in Oxford, LSU got back to their agressive, physical man coverage. They looked like the defense that we expect and, quite frankly, had Reed in hell the entire night. Despite a massive SEC blowout win, the biggest story of the night was, unfortunately, bad news. The aforementioned Whit Weeks sustained a broken fibula in the 3rd quarter and had to leave the sideline in a boot and on crutches. He was seen being taken to the Football Ops building on a golf cart before the game ended. On Sunday, Lonn Phillips Sullivan of LSU Odyssey was the first to report the injury and that he was set to have surgery on Monday. We’ve since learned that his surgery went well and there is optimism of a potential return around the Alabama or Texas game in November. For now, LSU will turn their attention to their final non-conference opponent of the 2026 season, the McNeese Cowboys. The two will kick off on Saturday night in Death Valley for 6:45 pm. Stay tuned for a full game preview coming soon on The Kneaux. For more, follow me on X @DCBilliotJr