Clemson at LSU Q&A Preview

Clemson will attempt to snap their three-game losing streak in season openers (Duke, Georgia, LSU) when they travel to Baton Rouge for the road leg of their home-and-home with the LSU Tigers. To help us preview the game, we connected with Zachary Junda from LSU Wire. You can follow him on X Clemson at LSU Q&A Preview.

This has been quite the offseason for LSU sports, but before we get into it, let’s talk about last season. When LSU beat Clemson, it seemed like they were destined for a playoff season. Instead, that was their best win of the year. Much like Clemson, LSU had talent and should have been better than their 7-6 record. How did it go so wrong?

Where to begin, where to begin. I suppose you can go all the way back to December and January when LSU whiffed on a good portion of its much hullabalooed transfer class. LSU either whiffed on a good portion of its portal class or allocated resources improperly. Instead of splurging on receivers and tight ends maybe they should have invested in the offensive line. 

Then there was the matter of Garrett Nussmeier’s health. During fall camp Nuss was rumored to have had a knee injury and arm fatigue, then when the season began a mysterious torso/oblique injury was out there but Brian Kelly and staff insisted “no, he’s actually fine” then we found out at the NFL Combine he had a cyst on his spine which explained why every time he took a hit it looked like he had been shot. 

But the biggest issue that plagued Brian Kelly-era LSU was, once again, the program’s inability to play complementary football. In 2022 LSU had decent enough offense and defense but arguably its worst special teams in program history; in ’23 you had the offense but not the defense, and in ’25 you had the defense but not the offense. When Kelly missed, he missed HARD and it says an awful lot about him that LSU was willing to come up with $54 million that they didn’t have to make him go away. 

LSU brought in the nation’s top transfer class and the 13th-ranked recruiting class. What position group do you think will be the most improved for LSU this year?

The offensive line should be the most improved unit for LSU because it just couldn’t be any worse than last year. LSU spent a pretty penny on Jordan Seaton (Colorado), a projected first round pick at left tackle, and Aliou Bah to reinforce the interior at right guard. LSU also made sure to spend enough to keep center Braelin Moore from entering last spring’s draft, while program guys Bo Bordelon and Weston Davis are back for their fifth and third years respectively. I’ll say this though: this starting five had better be good because Lane Kiffin himself said he’s not feeling great about the depth LSU has at offensive line. That’s not reassuring to hear about a position group that is so prone to dings and bruises.

LSU has done remarkably well with transfer QBs. Joe Burrow transferred from Ohio State and won a Heisman. Jayden Daniels transferred from Arizona State and won a Heisman. Now they have Sam Leavitt. In this era, is recruiting and developing QBs even important if you have the money to take top transfers with regularity? Also, do you — like me — think LSU should completely wipe Jayden Daniels their history following his cease-and-desist order regarding use of his name, image, and likeness?

They shouldn’t and they won’t. LSU’s got no interest at all in returning Daniels’ Heisman trophy. It’s the dumbest story out there and I can’t believe certain people in his camp cough his mom cough are meddling in this way. Of course this foolishness does allow me to pile on Brian Kelly some more so I’m grateful for that. For those unaware, Kelly apparently promised Jayden Daniels nobody else would wear again after he won the Heisman, but also promised to five-star cornerback DJ Pickett during his recruitment. Good on Lane Kiffin for keeping a promise made to a cornerstone piece currently on his roster, rather than trying to appease a guy who never even played for him. 

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Sam Leavitt was limited to seven games last season, but when he played, he averaged 233 passing yards and 44 rushing yards per game. Where are his differences and similarities to some of the great LSU quarterbacks of the last seven years?

He’s certainly the most accomplished quarterback of the three coming in. Burrow didn’t take a single meaningful snap at Ohio State, while Daniels had an up-and-down career at Arizona State. Leavitt is quite literally a CFP-caliber quarterback, having won the Big 12 his first year with the Sun Devils and took Texas to the wire in the quarterfinal round. But Sam Leavitt is also more banged up than either Burrow or Daniels. Everyone, including Leavitt, insists that his right foot is completely healed up after the Lisfranc surgery, but I’ll need to see it before believing it. 

Early camp indication is that LSU’s run game looks much improved. Is that a commentary on offensive improvement or concern about a defensive tackle group that will rely on freshmen and Clemson transfer Stephiylan Green? Neither LSU nor Clemson could run the ball effectively last season. Do you see this game giving anyone optimism in these rushing attacks for 2026?

Right now it feels more like a concern at defensive tackle because there’s a reason why LSU is so keen on getting Jack Pyburn back on the roster after this TRO granted a fifth year of eligibility to 16 players. Pyburn is mainly a defensive end, where LSU is also thin at, but can and has kicked inside to defensive tackle. Ahmad Breaux transferred out after two years, while junior defensive tackle Dom McKinley hasn’t quite lived up to the “five-star, No. 1 player at his position” hype coming out of high school. McKinley’s been serviceable, sure, but heading into his third year with the program has seemingly been passed up by a pair of freshmen Richard Anderson and Deuce Geralds. I’m as high on Anderson and Geralds as anybody, but the idea of one, or both, of my starting defensive tackles being 18-year-old freshmen makes me nervous. LSU needs McKinley or Stephiylan Green or Auburn transfer Malik Blocton to take charge of the group and allow Anderson and/or Geralds to acclimate to the college game at their own pace.

Update: LSU Has largely fixed this problem by signing an NFL pro.

What’s the one thing you worry could go wrong and lead to an upset loss to Clemson? Conversely, what’s the one area where you feel strongly that LSU has a clear advantage?

With all the changes around this LSU program it’s almost like being a fan of an expansion NFL team. LSU is bringing in an absurd 43 players out of the portal and nobody will truly know how this many new faces gels until September 5. Then you add in the fact that it’s Week 1, it’s the biggest home opener in program history, Gameday will be in town, oh and it’s the first game of the Lane Kiffin Era and I fear that the Tigers are too amped up, implode, and are 1-3 at the end of September (Clemson, Louisiana Tech, @ Ole Miss, Texas A&M). 

As for what I’m confident in: everywhere Lane Kiffin goes, offense follows. Be it Boca or Tuscaloosa or Oxford, Lane Kiffin teams light up the scoreboard and if this thing gets humming, LSU should be a playoff team in 2026.