Lane Kiffin isn’t hiding from the reality of where LSU is right now: the injuries are piling up, and he’s ready to be careful with just about everybody.
After Sam Leavitt left Saturday’s win over Texas A&M with a hamstring injury, Kiffin said Monday the Tigers will take an “extremely cautious” approach with Leavitt and the rest of the roster as the early-season wear and tear keeps building.
“Extremely. I think, I mean, it’s just-I’m human.
With what’s happened with these freak injuries. It’s tough.
“And actually in the game, I took our guys out earlier in that game than I did in the previous game, the previous home game, because just what was going on, and that just freaked me out.
“So we’ll be extremely cautious this week all around because it’s just the schedule you play with. Once you go to nine, it’s another SEC game. I mean, it feels like we’ve played a whole season already, and we have seven SEC games to go.”
Kiffin also said he spent time Monday weighing whether some players should sit this week against McNeese, a move aimed at keeping them out of harm’s way.
“Yeah. I mean, I’ve been going through that all day yesterday. I don’t know where we’re going to end up on that, but as I said, we’ve got seven conference games to go, four more road conference games, and probably five of the seven are going to be ranked.
“So yeah, you’ve got to look at things differently, I feel like, because of what’s happened.”
As for whether backup quarterback Landen Clark will start Saturday against the Cowboys if Leavitt can’t go, Kiffin said he “didn't know” yet.
In Other News...
LSUs Poll Position After That Win Says Plenty About The Tigers
LSUs latest surge still came with a familiar caveat in the polls, even after a convincing 35-6 win over Texas A&M. The Tigers held at No. 11 in the Coaches Poll and slipped one spot to No. 11 in the AP Top 25, a ranking that says as much about the national crowdedness around them as it does about their own performance. Floridas climb to No. 8 after beating Ole Miss was one of the bigger shifts near the top, but LSUs place remained a reminder that one big win does not always bring a corresponding leap.
For LSU, the more interesting part may be how little room there is left for error if the Tigers want the respect that usually comes with a late-season push. The AP list and the coaches version both showed movement elsewhere, with teams dropping out and others collecting votes, but LSU stayed planted just outside the top tier. In a week when some programs rose sharply and others faded from view, the Tigers were left in the middle, good enough to stay in the conversation but still waiting for the kind of change in perception that only comes with another statement win. [Read more 🡒]
LSUs SEC Push Suddenly Depends On How Far These Backups Can Go
After bouncing back with a win over Texas A&M in Week 4, LSU enters the heart of SEC play with a very different kind of test ahead of it. The Tigers are trying to keep momentum going after the loss to Ole Miss, but the bigger issue now is survival depth, with injuries thinning out key spots across the roster and forcing the next wave of players into the spotlight.
That has pushed backups like Landen Clark, Jackson Harris, Davhon Keys and Tamarcus Cooley into more important roles than LSU likely planned this early in the season. With linebacker Whit Weeks, quarterback Sam Leavitt, wide receiver Phillip Wright III, tight end TreyDez Green, linebacker Charles Ross II and safety Dashawn Spears all on the injury list, the Tigers push through the SEC may come down to how steady those reserve pieces can be while the staff waits for help to return. [Read more 🡒]
LSUs Texas A&M Grades Revealed One Breakout And One Lingering Concern
Pro Football Focus latest grading from LSUs game against Texas A&M offered a tidy snapshot of where the Tigers found traction and where they still have work to do. Jackson Harris came out as the highest-graded offensive player with a 92.0 mark, while Tamarcus Cooley paced the defense at 87.7, giving LSU a couple of bright spots to point to after a matchup that demanded consistency on both sides of the ball.
The same report also flagged the Tigers rougher edges, with Jayce Brown drawing the lowest offensive grade and Dylan Carpenter landing at the bottom on defense. For LSU, that kind of split matters because it reinforces the difference between isolated standouts and full-game reliability, leaving the staff with clear evidence of who is elevating the group and where the lingering concern still sits. [Read more 🡒]