Sam Leavitt’s first ugly Saturday at LSU spilled straight into an uglier Sunday morning.
The Tigers fell to Ole Miss in Lane Kiffin’s return to Oxford, and the pressure around LSU’s new quarterback was already building as fans debated whether he should sit. Then an account tied to his father, Jared Leavitt, dragged the conversation far away from football.
By 9:42 a.m. Sunday, the account named Jared Leavitt and widely treated as his, @Gride5656, had replied to a New York street video with a post that read, “People walking dogs in New York seems to offend the invading Islamic horde.” The same account then followed with, “Yep the take over is here,” Leavitt allegedly wrote.
BroBible said it could not independently confirm the handle, even as the name and the Sam posts lined up. The Arizona Republic treated the pattern as Jared Leavitt’s.
That left LSU dealing with a mess no quarterback wants attached to his name. Sam Leavitt had already taken the heat for the loss in Oxford, and now his father’s social media was pulling the family into a public fight over Muslims.
The timing made it worse: the Tigers’ game ended around 10:30 p.m. CT, and the post was already circulating the next morning.
Jared Leavitt is a former BYU linebacker. Sam left Arizona State for Baton Rouge, and LSU spent the offseason talking about keeping him healthy after the foot issues in Tempe. He was supposed to be the piece that helped make Kiffin’s first LSU roster make sense.
Instead, the weekend turned into a test on two fronts. The offense was already under scrutiny after the loss to Ole Miss. Then the account attached to his last name turned a football story into something else entirely.
Arizona’s paper said similar posts were not new, which only sharpened the concern around a starter trying to keep his job while his father was arguing about religion on a public app. College football parents live on message boards and timelines now, but most of them stay in the box score.
This one didn’t.
Jared played at BYU, and Sam’s brother Dallin made it to the NFL, so the family already knows how quickly a last name becomes content. But this time, the attention was all wrong. There has been no apology from the account, and LSU has not yet been forced to answer for it.
That may not last if the replies keep coming. Sam still has to play the next one, but his dad made sure the week would be about more than football.
In Other News...
Pat McAfee Sparks Ole Miss Sideline Buzz With Unexpected Game-Day Appearance
Pat McAfee showed up on the sideline for Ole Miss-LSU on Sept. 19, and his presence quickly became one of the more talked-about details around the game. He was seen standing next to Mary Kate Cornett, the Ole Miss student who had previously been drawn into a false rumor McAfee discussed on his show, a saga that had already spilled well beyond the football field.
Cornett had once considered legal action against McAfee before the matter was resolved outside of court, which made their shared appearance in Oxford all the more notable. Neither has publicly addressed what it meant, and for now the image of the two together is left to linger without an explanation from either side. [Read more 🡒]
Ole Miss Just Took A Rivalry Shot LSU Fans Wont Forget
Ole Miss left its mark on the rivalry with LSU in a 32-24 win that came with a little extra theater after the final whistle. The Rebels not only handled business on the field, but also leaned into the moment by playing "Callin Baton Rouge" as LSU players walked off, a nod that was sure to land with plenty of bite for a SEC crowd that knows exactly what that song means.
Trinidad Chambliss added to the night with a strong performance against his former coach, Lane Kiffin, giving Ole Miss another layer of satisfaction in a game that already carried plenty of edge. Between the postgame gesture from fans and players and the way the Rebels closed it out, this was the kind of win that sticks around long after the score is forgotten. [Read more 🡒]
Ole Miss Just Exposed The Same Lane Kiffin Problem Again
Lane Kiffins first game against a ranked opponent as LSUs coach ended the way so many of his biggest nights have gone before, with another frustrating result against a Top 25 team. Ole Miss handled the Tigers 32-24 in Oxford, and the Rebels did much of the damage through Trinidad Chambliss, who threw for 363 yards and accounted for three total touchdowns in a performance that kept LSU on its heels.
The loss pushed Kiffins record against ranked opponents to 13-26, a reminder that the familiar issue has followed him into a new job. For Ole Miss, it was another statement win in a game that carried plenty of familiarity and even more significance, with LSU left to reckon not just with the result but with the same problem showing up again. [Read more 🡒]
