The wait is nearly over. It's been 277 days since LSU hired Lane Kiffin as their head football coach. We've gone through the drama over his Ole Miss departure, a wild transfer portal period, spring practice with questions about Sam Leavitt, and now the ongoing lawsuits to make class of 2022 players eligible once again. A book could be written about Kiffin's time at LSU and there hasn't even been a football game, yet. We’re less than 48 hours away from kickoff between LSU and Clemson. Both teams are looking to bounce back from incredibly disappointing seasons in 2025. For LSU, they fired Brian Kelly and hired the aforementioned, Lane Kiffin. His entire offensive staff including offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr followed him to Baton Rouge and will look to bring their success at Ole Miss with them. The Rebels offense was ranked 1st in the SEC in total offense with 489.7 yards per game and 3rd in scoring with 36.9 points per game. Blake Baker is back for his third season as the Tigers defensive coordinator. He turned down opportunities to be a head coach at both Tulane and Memphis this offseason, citing his desire to bring a title to LSU. His defense was good in 2025, but should see even more improvement thanks to a few key additions. Baker’s unit ranked 6th in the SEC in total defense, allowing 328.7 yards per game. As for scoring defense, they finished 5th by only allowing 19.8 points per game. There’s a ton of turnover for the Clemson offense. The departure of veteran quarterback Cade Klubnik is the biggest of all. Chad Morris now takes over as offensive coordinator, which is his second stint in the position and third overall at the school. He was previously the OC between 2011-2014 and then returned, again, as an offensive analyst in 2023. He is calling plays for the first time since being the OC at Auburn, following two years as head coach of Arkansas. As for Clemson’s offense in 2025, they finished 9th in the ACC in total offense with 392.2 yards per game and 11th in scoring with 27.2 points per game. Tom Allen is entering his 2nd season as the defensive coordinator for the Tigers. He was head coach of Indiana for 7 years between 2017-2023, then spent a year at Penn St as DC in 2024, before making it to Clemson a year ago. His unit was a solid one, but they lost a ton of talent across their defense. In 2025, they ranked 8th in the ACC with 356.7 yards per game allowed and 3rd in scoring with 20.5 points per game. LSU Offense vs Clemson Defense Passing Game LSU’s prized addition was quarterback Sam Leavitt. After starting for two years at Arizona St and leading the Sun Devils to the inaugural 12-team playoff in 2024 as a redshirt freshman, he battle a Lisfranc injury that hobbled him for most of 2025. He’s reportedly back to 100% after surgery and a full offseason of rehab and set to pioneer the Kiffin/Weis Jr offense. In his two seasons at Arizona St, he threw for 4,513 yards with 34 touchdowns and 9 interceptions. He also ran for 749 yards and another 10 touchdowns. He’s dynamic and the key to LSU’s success relies on his ability to stay healthy. As for who he’ll be throwing to, that’s a big mystery. His options are clear, but who emerges from the Tigers crop of wide receivers is the question. LSU added 10 receivers in the transfer portal. Guys like Jayce Brown (Kansas St), Jackson Harris (Hawaii), Tre Brown (Old Dominion), Eugene Wilson (Florida), and Winston Watkins (Ole Miss) seem like the most likely candidates to lead the way for the receiving core. The only non-question in terms of pass catchers is tight-end Trey’Dez Green. The 6’7 freak of nature is back for his junior year and highly expected to dominate and become a top NFL draft pick in April of 2027. Despite a putrid offense in 2025, Green was able to haul in 33 receptions for 433 yards and 7 touchdowns. He will, without a doubt, be the go-to target. Now wearing the infamous #7, Green is expected to have a big year. Clemson had been blessed for years with two separate stints of Terrells at cornerback. Younger brother, Avion Terrell, spent the past three seasons with the Tigers, becoming a 2nd round pick by the Falcons in this past NFL Draft. His departure has left Clemson with a hole at CB1. Ashton Hampton seems like the most likely candidate to fill that spot, entering his 3rd season in the program. He’s coming off of a solid sophomore season in which he had 10 pass breakups and an interception. Elliot Washington is most likely to line up opposite of Hampton. He transferred after 3 seasons with Penn St. While he has a ton of experience by playing in 36 games, he’s only made a single start. There’s a trio of safeties that are likely to see the field. Corey Myrick transferred over from Southern Miss after a phenomenal sophomore season in which he recorded 92 tackles, 4 pass breakups, and 2 interceptions. Senior Ronan Hanafin started 5 games last season and totaled 64 tackles with 5 pass breakups and an interceptions. They’ll be joined by Jerome Carter III, who transferred in after two seasons at Old Dominion. In 2025, he started 12 games and recorded 75 tackles with 2 pass breakups and 6 interceptions. LSU’s ability to protect Leavitt will be paramount. The other prize from the portal was left tackle Jordan Seaton. He is likely to line up across from Will Heldt, Clemson’s senior defensive end and sacks leader from a year ago. After two years at Purdue, Heldt transferred over and racked up 7.5 sacks in 2025. Running Game Running back may LSU’s deepest position, especially at the top. Dilin Jones has transferred in from Wisconsin and seemingly taken full control of the top spot. He was the starter for the Badgers, but went down with turf toe after just 7 games. Harlem Berry and Caden Durham return for the Tigers and look to find much more success in the new scheme after the struggles under Joe Sloan. Frank Wilson’s rotation left a lot to be desired, making it hard for either back to get much of a rhythm and amassing just 996 yards and 5 touchdowns combined. Clemson’s leader is linebacker Sammy Brown. He delivers constant production, racking up 106 tackles with 13 for loss and 5 sacks a year ago. He’ll be in the #47 and active all over the field. He’ll be joined by Jeremiah Alexander, who is entering his 2nd season with the Tigers after three years at Alabama. The interior of the defensive line has been rebuilt following a few key departures after last season. Amare Adams played sparingly as a true freshman, but looks to step in to a prominent role this year. He’ll likely be joined by Andy Burburija, the transfer from community college where he racked up 78 tackles with 27.5 for loss and 14 sacks. His ability to elevate his game to a FBS level will be key. LSU’s offensive line was abysmal a year ago, but all indications point to severe improvement under 1st year offensive line coach Eric Wolford. Seaton and Aliou Bah are the two newcomers, but despite the struggles under Brad Davis, three of the starters will be returners. Center Braelin Moore was good in 2025, but played hurt after injuring his ankle on the first series in week 2. Bo Borderlon has emerged after 4 years in the LSU program and will start at left guard. Weston Davis struggled mightily as a full time starter, but his raw ability and size point to a special player somewhere in there. Wofford hopes to unlock that ability and round out his starting line at right tackles. LSU Defense vs Clemson Offense Passing Game As good as Baker’s defense was in 2025, they were missing one key component. An every down pass rusher. They brought Princewill Umanmielen over from Ole Miss with his 9.0 sacks, immediately upgrading the defense as a whole. Dylan Carpenter and Jordan Ross are likely to rotate at the other defensive end position. PJ Woodland started all 13 games a season ago and truly blossomed in to a good cornerback with 9 pass breakups and 2 interceptions. Former 5-star stud DJ Pickett steps in to the other starting cornerback position, giving the Tigers a great 1-2 punch. Safety is where LSU is deep in the secondary. They added Ty Benefield from Boise St, who has the ability to do everything. He’s already been compared to Tyrann Mathieu by the Honey Badger himself. In two seasons as a starter with the Broncos, Benefield totaled 235 tackles with 18 for loss, 17 pass breakups and 5 interceptions. He’ll be joined by a rotation of Tamarcus Cooley and Jhase Thomas at the other safety position. Cooley played over 700 snaps a year ago, but the emergence of Thomas during training camp was one of the biggest storylines. Dashawn Spears will play the star position, which is typically an extra defender in the box that can be flexible with his assignment. He’ll be the first safety to fill the role following two years of Harold Perkins for Baker, which may help with coverage ability. As mentioned earlier, Clemson is replacing their multi-year starter at quarterback. Christopher Vizzina won the job over talented freshman Tait Reynolds, but expect to see a mix of both every now and then. Vizzina has been around the program for 3 years, but has played sparingly behind Klubnik. He’s made one start and it came at home against SMU in 2025, in which he played extremely well. He went 29-42 for 317 yards and 3 touchdowns with no turnovers. Saturday night will be his first road start, though. Thankfully for him, he has plenty of experience at the receiver position to lean on. Both TJ Moore and Bryant Wesco Jr return as starters from a year ago. Moore finished with 52 receptions for 837 yards and 4 touchdowns, while Wesco recorded 31 receptions for 537 yards and 6 touchdowns in just 7 games played. Tristan Smith Jr is a 5th-year senior that will provide even more experience as a 3rd or 4th receiver. Keep an eye out for Naeem Burroughs, a 4-star freshman who was highly ranked out of high school. Chad Morris does like to use his tight ends, so look for them to get Christian Bentancur involved, as well. He had 20 receptions for 215 yards and 3 touchdowns a year ago. This particular matchup could decide the entire game. Vizzina is stepping in to what would be a dangerous environment for just about any quarterback, much less one that’s making his first road start and just his second overall. The battle between a very good LSU secondary and some productive, experience Clemson wide receivers will be an important one. Morris will likely utilize a lot of quick routes to get the ball out of his vulnerable quarterback’s hands as quickly as possible. Running Game You’d be hard pressed to find a better linebacker duo than what LSU will be putting out on to the field this year. Whit Weeks has been a constant in his 3 seasons as a Tiger and they basically cloned him. TJ Dottery transferred over from Ole Miss and can do everything Weeks can do. He led the SEC in tackles in 2025 with 98. He had 5.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles. Weeks was banged up for much of the year and even when he was on the field during the second half of the season, he was severely hindered by his ankle injury. There’s no question what he can do when healthy, though, totaling 205 tackles with 16.5 for loss and 5 sacks over his career. Both have experience as the quarterback of the defense and have experience wearing the green dot communication helmet. Along with Trey’Dez Green, Weeks was awarded #7, making it the first time the number has been worn by two players at a time. Up front helping clog the middle will be a combination of 5-star freshman and former 5-star Dom McKinley, now a junior. Deuce Geralds and Richard Anderson are both freaks up front, as proven by how quickly they have found their way to the field. Clemson struggled to run the ball in 2025 as the 11th best team in the ACC and now they go forward without their top running back. With Adam Randall gone, Gideon Davidson takes over as the starter. He had just 260 yards on 60 carries a year ago as a freshman, but has yet to find the end zone. Next behind him is Chris Johnson Jr, a transfer from SMU. He had 479 yards and averaged a whopping 7.1 yards per carry last year, cashing in 4 touchdowns. The best way to help a young quarterback is with a rushing attack, but that is as big of a question as Vizzina. Chad Morris’s gameplan and how he decides to attack this excellent Blake Baker defense will be a sight to behold. Clemson has 4 new starters on the offensive line, which adds to the unknown. Senior Harris Sewell is the only returner and has moved from guard to center. Prediction There is so much newness on both sides of this matchup to kickoff the 2026 season. New quarterbacks, new coordinators, new skill position players, new guys in the trenches, and for LSU, the new head coach. That’s not super surprising when two teams that have each won a national championship in the past 10 years ends up going 7-5. It’s likely that Clemson is being undervalued to some extent. All of the hype is around LSU and that’s understandable given the circumstances. It’s not empty hype, though. Lane Kiffin is a hell of a coach. Whether you like him or not, you have to admit that. Between his ability to turn an SEC program around and the resources that have delivered him anything and everything he needs since taking the job, it’s hard to pick against LSU until we’re given reason to be wary. On top of the X’s and O’s, the environment in Death Valley on Saturday is going to be special. It’s already been reported that over 900 media/celebrity credentials were given out, making it the most credentialed game in the history of Tiger Stadium. The excitement is palpable. It’s hard to envision a scenario in which LSU doesn’t kick off the Kiffin era with a bang. All signs point towards a fun future for the Tigers and that will start on Saturday night as they cruise to victory. LSU – 31 Clemson - 13