LSU came out of Saturday’s 32-24 loss to Ole Miss with more than a mark in the loss column. The Tigers also left Oxford with a sharper picture of what has to tighten up fast if this season is going to stay on track.
The issues were easy to spot. LSU got pushed around up front, Sam Leavitt’s choices repeatedly stalled drives, and the secondary was left exposed once injuries and breakdowns started piling up. Taken together, it was the kind of performance that can snowball on a team in a hurry.
The biggest alarm bell sounded along the offensive line. LSU’s front was rough from the jump, and the right side in particular had a hard time handling Ole Miss.
Aliou Bah and Weston Davis were consistently overpowered, and the pressure kept finding Leavitt. He was hurried six times and sacked twice, while LSU’s first-half rushing average barely edged Ole Miss by a tenth of a yard, 3.6 per carry to 3.5.
LSU did find a short-lived answer after halftime when Kiffin shifted physically-imposing tight end Trey’Dez Green into a blocking role to help stabilize the edge. The move gave the offense more breathing room, and Leavitt had more time to work through the play.
But that lift didn’t last. Green later went down with a knee injury near the end of the game, and the offense bogged down again.
That was a rough step back for a line that had looked much better against Clemson and held up against Louisiana Tech. It also brought back uncomfortable memories of the 2025 season, when LSU’s offensive front was a major problem. A night like this in Oxford raises real concern about whether the same story could be creeping back into 2026.
Leavitt’s play only made the strain worse. The quarterback has the tools to be a dual-threat weapon, and that was on display in spots.
But too often in the first half, he bailed on passing plays by tucking the ball and running before giving his receivers a chance downfield. Even with the line struggling, the decision-making created more wasted snaps and more short drives.
Those empty possessions mattered. They sent Ole Miss back onto the field quickly and left LSU’s defense with less time to recover. Once that group got worn down, Ole Miss began to lean on the Tigers and build the early cushion that shaped the game.
Kiffin adjusted as the night went on, and LSU’s offense looked better when the staff leaned into more designed quarterback runs for Leavitt. That helped the Tigers climb out of a 17-point hole, but the damage from the opening stretch had already changed the shape of the game.
The concern with Leavitt isn’t new, either. In LSU’s first two games, he showed a run-first tendency and poor reads as a passer, including a 3-interception night against Louisiana Tech.
Against lesser opponents, that style can survive. Against a team like Ole Miss, the limits showed up.
On the other side of the ball, LSU’s secondary had too little help when things broke down. Defensive backs were already viewed as the biggest weakness on Blake Baker’s 2026 roster, and Saturday exposed how thin the margin is when that unit has to stand alone. Cornerbacks PJ Woodland and DJ Pickett were left without much support when coverage failed, and a first-half injury to Dashawn Spears, who plays star as a hybrid linebacker and defensive back, made the problem worse.
Trinidad Chambliss took advantage. He finished 33-for-48 for 348 yards and two passing touchdowns, and he spent much of the night picking apart LSU through the air.
Some of that is on Chambliss, who is a Heisman candidate. But the Tigers also made things too easy, with receivers finding too much space in dangerous spots.
There were warning signs in the first two weeks, but LSU’s front seven had been able to get into the backfield quickly enough to cover up those lapses. That protection disappeared in Oxford, and once it did, Ole Miss kept finding the openings.
In Other News...
LSU Fans Have One More Reason To Hate This Ole Miss Loss
Ole Miss left Baton Rouge with a 32-24 win over LSU, and Trinidad Chambliss had plenty to do with it. The Rebels quarterback piled up 363 passing yards, threw two touchdown passes and one interception, and also added a rushing score, turning in the kind of all-around performance that made LSU fans swallow a frustrating home loss.
As if the result itself were not enough, Chambliss gave Tigers fans one more annoyance after the final whistle. In a postgame interview with ESPN's Holly Rowe, he let an expletive slip while saying Ole Miss's "Hotty Toddy" cheer, a small moment that only added another layer to an already aggravating night for LSU supporters. [Read more 🡒]
LSU Now Has Two Injury Worries Fans Can't Ignore
LSUs 32-24 loss to Ole Miss was already a frustrating night, and the injury list only added to the concern. Safety Dashawn Spears went down early in the second quarter and was later seen on crutches, while tight end TreyDez Green left in the fourth quarter with a right knee injury after being unable to put weight on his leg.
The Tigers did get a small bit of good news from linebacker TJ Dottery, who was questionable before kickoff but still played and made an impact with five tackles and a pass breakup. Even so, losing two key starters in the same game leaves LSU waiting on answers it could hardly afford to need right now. [Read more 🡒]
Lane Kiffins Family Is Forcing Ole Miss Fans To Confront Something Ugly
The buildup to LSU and Ole Miss has brought the usual noise, but some of it has gone well past football. Lane Kiffins family, including his daughter Landry, has been targeted with inappropriate jokes on social media, a reminder of how quickly rivalry banter can turn ugly when the game is this big. Ahead of a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on ABC, the conversation around this matchup has been complicated by a very different kind of attention.
Layla Kiffin, Lanes ex-wife, posted a message urging kindness, and Landry publicly addressed the offensive comments herself. It is the kind of episode that forces a fan base to confront where the line is, especially when the spotlight on a high-profile coach bleeds into his familys life. The football part of the night still matters, but so does the reminder that not everything attached to a rivalry belongs in the stands or online. [Read more 🡒]