LSU Against the World: Rain, Noise and 51 Points Later, the Tigers Made Their Statement

Robby Lafleur

Sep 8

5 min read

BATON ROUGE, La. — They talked about the coach.

They talked about the controversy.

They talked about the players LSU wanted to bring in, the players the SEC didn't want them to have, the courtrooms, the rules, the warnings and seemingly everything surrounding LSU football except the football itself.

By Saturday night, there wasn't much left to talk about.

LSU 51. Clemson 10.

In Lane Kiffin's first game as head coach of the LSU Tigers, Death Valley witnessed something much bigger than a season-opening win.

It witnessed a statement.

And after a week that increasingly felt like LSU against everybody, the Tigers answered the only place that ultimately mattered.

On the field.

Before Kickoff, the Noise Was Everywhere

LSU entered Saturday night's matchup surrounded by controversy.

Kiffin's push to bring former Ole Miss players Dae'Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris to Baton Rouge after each spent time with NFL organizations had turned into a national debate over eligibility. A Louisiana court ruling opened a path for their return to college football, but the SEC and NCAA remained firmly opposed.

Then Clemson entered the conversation.

Ahead of the game, Clemson notified LSU that using the former NFL players could potentially violate the contract between the two schools.

LSU ultimately chose not to put Wright or Harris on the roster for Saturday's game.

So the Tigers walked into their opener without the two players who had dominated the week's headlines.

The questions remained.

Had Kiffin created an unnecessary distraction?

Would the controversy affect his locker room?

Would all of the noise surrounding LSU become too much for a team preparing to play its first game under a new head coach?

Saturday night provided the answer.

No.

Then Came the Rain

As if the week hadn't provided enough drama, Mother Nature decided she wanted a part in the story too.

Rain poured over Tiger Stadium. Lightning moved into the area. Fans were forced from their seats, and kickoff was pushed back nearly two hours.

For a season opener already overflowing with anticipation, the wait felt endless.

But something happened while Death Valley waited.

Tiger Nation stayed.

Ponchos came out.

Purple and gold disappeared beneath sheets of rain.

The stadium emptied when safety required it—and then filled right back up.

By the time LSU finally took the field, Death Valley looked like Death Valley again.

More than 100,000 people had waited through the storm to see the beginning of the Lane Kiffin era.

They were rewarded for it.

Once LSU Started, Clemson Couldn't Stop It

LSU didn't simply beat Clemson.

LSU overwhelmed Clemson.

The Tigers finished with 644 yards of total offense while holding Clemson to just 145.

LSU rushed for 309 yards.

Clemson managed 40.

LSU recorded 38 first downs.

Clemson had eight.

The LSU defense recorded four sacks, 11 tackles for loss and pressured Clemson relentlessly.

And Clemson punted 10 times.

That isn't winning a few favorable matchups.

That's domination.

Quarterback Sam Leavitt gave Tiger fans their first real look at what Kiffin's offense could become, throwing for 230 yards and a touchdown while adding 113 yards and two more scores on the ground.

Wisconsin transfer Dilin Jones added another 113 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

And when Clemson attempted to find some momentum, LSU's defense made sure it didn't last.

Edge rusher Jordan Ross intercepted Clemson quarterback Christopher Vizzina and took it 30 yards to the house.

By halftime, LSU led 31–3.

The same team that spent the week being questioned had outgained Clemson 336–54 through two quarters.

Clemson had managed one first down.

LSU had 21.

And Lane Kiffin couldn't resist.

Asked about the performance at halftime, Kiffin delivered perhaps the most Lane Kiffin response imaginable:

“Imagine if we had pro players.”

Message received.

The Defense Deserves Just as Much Attention

Lane Kiffin's name will naturally be attached to LSU's offense.

That's his reputation.

But what Blake Baker's defense did Saturday night may have been every bit as impressive.

Clemson simply could not sustain offense.

LSU closed running lanes, attacked the quarterback and prevented Clemson from developing anything resembling rhythm.

This wasn't a defense surviving while Kiffin's offense piled up points.

This was a defense dictating the game.

Clemson's 145 total yards tell the story.

So do those eight first downs.

If this is what LSU can consistently pair with a Lane Kiffin offense, the ceiling in Baton Rouge changes considerably.

Kiffin Didn't Just Win His Debut

There are wins, and then there are introductions.

Saturday was an introduction.

Kiffin arrived at LSU carrying enormous expectations, an enormous personality and plenty of critics.

Then, before he could coach his first game, he became the center of one of the biggest controversies in college football.

There were countless ways Saturday could have gone wrong.

Instead, LSU produced one of the most dominant performances of opening weekend.

Afterward, Kiffin acknowledged the criticism he'd received over the previous two weeks and made something else clear: his job isn't to satisfy the people writing about him.

His job is to do what he believes is right.

And then win football games.

On Saturday night, he did the second part emphatically.

Give Tiger Nation Its Credit

There is another part of this story that won't appear in the box score.

The fans.

It would have been easy to leave.

Thousands of people had already spent the day tailgating. Then the skies opened. Lightning delayed the game. Kickoff kept moving later.

Nobody would have blamed fans for deciding they'd had enough.

But this was the first night of a new era.

And Baton Rouge wasn't missing it.

When the Tigers finally came through that tunnel, Death Valley was waiting.

Wet.

Loud.

And ready.

There is something fitting about the fact that Lane Kiffin's first game at LSU couldn't simply begin on time under clear skies.

Of course it couldn't.

Not after the week LSU had.

The beginning needed a little chaos.

LSU Against the World

Maybe that phrase sounds dramatic after one football game.

But consider the week.

Questions about Kiffin.

Criticism over LSU's roster moves.

The NCAA.

The SEC.

Clemson's warning.

National debate.

Then lightning.

Then rain.

Then a two-hour wait.

And after all of it, LSU finally got to play football.

51–10.

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney summed up his night afterward in six words:

“The best thing about that game is it's over.”

For Clemson, maybe it was.

For LSU?

It feels like something is just beginning.

One game does not win an SEC Championship.

One blowout does not guarantee a College Football Playoff appearance.

And one September night certainly doesn't tell us everything this LSU team will become.

But Saturday told us something.

These Tigers aren't afraid of the noise.

Their coach certainly isn't afraid of it.

And if the rest of college football wants to keep talking about LSU, Lane Kiffin and everything happening in Baton Rouge, that's perfectly fine.

Because while everybody else was talking Saturday night, LSU was busy putting up 51.

The rain came.

The doubters came.

Clemson came.

Death Valley stayed.

And when the storm finally cleared, there was only one message left glowing on the scoreboard: