No. 7 LSU heads into a loaded Week 3 matchup at Ole Miss with a new wrinkle on the injury front: quarterback Sam Leavitt is listed as doubtful on the initial SEC Availability Report.
That status lands with less than 70 hours to go before Saturday night in Oxford, and it immediately becomes the biggest storyline attached to a Top-10 showdown at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. LSU is set to visit No.
8 Ole Miss in the SEC Game of the Week, with College GameDay also headed to Oxford and kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC.
Leavitt’s name on the report is the one that will draw the most attention, especially after he looked off last Saturday against Louisiana Tech. Through two games, the LSU quarterback has gone 41-for-66 for 574 yards with two touchdowns and four interceptions.
If Leavitt can’t go, LSU has already shown how it would pivot. Through Weeks 1 and 2, the Tigers have leaned on Elon transfer Landen Clark as the backup ahead of USC five-star transfer Husan Longstreet.
Clark has completed 7 of 10 passes for 109 yards and a touchdown without an interception, while also adding 42 rushing yards and another score on seven carries. That gives him 151 total yards and two touchdowns on the season.
LSU’s availability list also includes several other names. WR Phillip Wright III, LB Jaiden Braker and RB Raycine Guillory are all out.
LB TJ Dottery and LB Tylen Singleton are questionable. TE Trey'Dez Green, LB Whit Weeks, LB Davhon Keys and OL Aliou Bah are all probable.
Ole Miss has its own list to monitor. CB Victor Lincoln Jr. and OL Emanuel Faulkner are out, while RB Makhi Frazier and OL Tommy Kinsler IV are questionable. LB Keaton Thomas and CB Cedrick Beavers are probable.
The game also carries extra edge because of Lane Kiffin’s return to the Magnolia State after a messy exit last November. On Monday, Kiffin made it clear where he thinks the burden sits.
"The pressure is on [Ole Miss]. We won seven games last year.
They won 13. They return two Heisman candidates," Kiffin said on Monday.
"How often does that ever happen in the same backfield? "
"We had it one time with Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush - and [Ole Miss has the] second longest winning streak in the country, so you guys just get to go play, and the pressure is not on you."
He added later, "I know obviously a lot's going to be made about me, but this is about the players being prepared really well and playing really well. Pete's not going to tackle anybody. I'm not going to throw any touchdowns," Kiffin said on Monday.
"This is about our guys.. This is the first SEC game - both teams are 2-0, and we've got to prepare really well."
In Other News...
Lane Kiffin Family Drama Just Added Another Twist To LSU Week
The LSU-Ole Miss week already had plenty of juice on its own, and Landry Kiffin found a way to make it even more interesting by launching her clothing brand, Fifth Year, with a live sale during the game. The line centers on activewear and gameday apparel, built around college colors and traditions, which makes the timing feel tailor-made for a rivalry weekend that has long carried meaning on both sides.
For LSU fans, the wrinkle is the family connection behind it all. Landrys brand launch lands in the middle of a week tied to both LSU and Ole Miss, a reminder of how closely those schools are woven into her family story. Fifth Year is still in its opening chapter, but the rollout has already given this matchup an extra layer of off-field intrigue. [Read more 🡒]
LSU Ole Miss Rivalry Just Picked Up An Ugly Off Field Twist
Just before LSU lined up to face Ole Miss, one of the Tigers newest defensive additions was dealing with something far less familiar than a game plan. Princewill Umanmielen was served court papers tied to a breach-of-contract lawsuit filed by Ole Miss, a reminder that this rivalry has spilled well beyond the field and into the legal side of roster movement.
The case also involves Devin Harper, another former Rebel who transferred to LSU, and it asks for nearly $1 million in penalties while trying to sort out revenue-sharing obligations between the schools. For LSU, it adds an uncomfortable layer to a matchup that already carries plenty of edge, with the off-field fallout now hanging over players who made the jump from Oxford to Baton Rouge. [Read more 🡒]
LSUs SEC Standing Suddenly Became A Real Issue Behind The Scenes
A behind-the-scenes hiccup in LSUs SEC relationship surfaced this week when LSU System President Dr. Wade Rousse told Commissioner Greg Sankey the university would not attend a high-stakes league meeting on the advice of legal counsel. The reason was tied to a federal lawsuit involving LSU employees, a complication that forced the school to sit out a gathering it otherwise had every reason to be part of as conference business continued to pile up around college sports.
LSU still stressed that its commitment to the SEC has not changed, and the league moved forward without the Tigers, taking no action to punish the university for the absence. Even so, the timing only added to the tension around a legal dispute over athlete eligibility that remains active and is still working its way through the courts, leaving LSU in the middle of a situation that is far from settled. [Read more 🡒]