LSU destroys Clemson in Lane Kiffin’s debut…
BATON ROUGE, La. — Lane Kiffin’s LSU debut was delayed, however certainly not derailed.
Sam Leavitt complemented his 113 yards and two speeding touchdowns with 230 yards and a TD passing, edge rusher Jordan Ross returned an interception for a score, and No. 11 LSU rode the “Lane Train” to a convincing 51-10 victory over Clemson on Saturday evening.
“Imagine if we had pro players,” Kiffin said lightheartedly at the end of a quick TV interview at halftime, by which period LSU led 31-3, had outgained Clemson 336 yards to 54, and had 21 first downs to Clemson’s one.
Kiffin has gotten commitments from two of his former Mississippi gamers — tight end Dae’Quan Wright and defensive deal with Zxavian Harris — who spent a part of this offseason with NFL groups.
A Louisiana court docket ruling cleared the method for him to put them on his roster this week. But in the face of fervent opposition from the NCAA and SEC, he elected not to take action.
At least, not yet.
“If we would have won close or ugly, the whole story would have been I screwed the whole team up” by attempting to signal current professionals, Kiffin said. “I have been criticized heavily the last two weeks, and I get it. But my job is to not please you and what you are going to write. My job is what I believe is right — and I believe we were fighting for what is right for those kids.”
Lane Kiffin reacts to a play during the first half of LSU’s 51-10 blowout win over Clemson on Sept. 5, 2026 in Baton Rouge, La. Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
Lightning strikes
A sellout crowd at 102,000-seat Tiger Stadium was scattered by a downpour and a lightning delay that pushed the start again almost two hours.
Still, Death Valley was packed when the game started — and followers didn’t have to look at more than one quarter to see Kiffin’s up-tempo offense live as much as its repute, operating 23 performs for 140 yards.
LSU completed with 644 yards of offense while handing Clemson its worst loss in about 30 years.
“The best thing about that game is it’s over,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “Just actually poor performance, not what we labored for or anticipated.
“You’re not going to win if you can’t stop the run,” Swinney added. “We just did a really poor job of setting the edge, especially versus the quarterback run, which really killed us.”
Sam Leavitt throws a move during LSU’s blowout win over Clemson. Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
Dilin Jones, a switch from Wisconsin who completed with 113 yards and two TDs speeding, gave LSU the lead for good with a 1-yard run that made it 10-3.
“Everyone saw what this offense is capable of — I mean, the quarterback we have, the offensive coordinator (Charlie Weis Jr.), the offensive line,” Jones said. “We really felt like we could just go out there and execute.”
Ross’ 30-yard interception return made it 17-3 before Leavitt’s frenetic scoring runs of 8 and 13 yards put LSU up by 4 TDs late in the second quarter.
“Anything I can do to help my team get into the endzone I will do,” said Leavitt, a switch participant who helped lead Arizona State to the College Football Playoff in 2024, however noticed his 2025 campaign derailed by a foot injury. “I’m going to take the plays when they come to me.”
Clemson’s offense struggled a lot that Swinney subbed beginning QB Christopher Vizzina out of the game in favor of freshman Tait Reynolds late in the second quarter.
LSU pulled farther away when Leavitt discovered Ole Miss switch Winston Watkins Jr. for a 32-yard TD down the left sidelined in the third quarter. Jones’ 12-yard TD made it 44-3.
Leavitt given the remainder of the evening off after that, however LSU scored as soon as more when reserve Landen Clark accomplished a 30-yard scoring move to Phillip Wright III.
The takeaway
Clemson: Swinney may very well be in for a tricky season. Clemson hasn’t taken a loss this unhealthy since falling 41-0 to Syracuse in the 1996 Gator Bowl.
It was a tough start to the season for Dabo Swinney’s Clemson team. AP
A promising start to the game on protection belied how powerful of an evening it was going to be for Clemson, which briefly led 3-0 after cornerback Ashton Hampton intercepted Leavitt’s second move of the game.
“The start of the game was great for us, but we couldn’t truly capitalize on it,” Vizzina said, referring to his offense’s stumbles. “We’re not helping our defense at all.”
LSU: After ranking 126th nationally in speeding with 104 yards per game in 2025, LSU is benefitting from improved play by the offensive line, the addition of Jones and Leavitt’s legs. LSU rushed for 213 yards in the first half alone, more than in any game last season.
Meanwhile, coordinator Blake Baker’s protection picked up the place it left off, producing 4 sacks and a defensive score while holding Clemson to below 100 yards and without a TD until less than seven minutes remained fourth quarter.
LSU’s protection has “a chance to be really good, with players that fit well together,” Kiffin said. “That is exciting, and they should be excited about that.”
It couldn’t have been a a lot better start for Kiffin or LSU athletic director Verge Ausberry, who moved aggressively to rent the charismatic, yet polarizing coach. The two embraced as Kiffin walked off the subject after the game.
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