Should LSU football fans be worried about the 2026 season?

When LSU football hired Lane Kiffin to take over its football program, there was nothing but pure excitement. One of college football’s premier programs hired one of the top offensive minds in the sport, filling fans’ heads with hope for an Indiana-like turnaround. Then the transfer portal happened, and the Tigers signed the No.

1 class, bringing in the top-ranked offensive tackle, quarterback, and edge rusher, along with several other players with loads of potential. At Lane Kiffin’s press conference to close out the spring practice window on Tuesday afternoon, the mood around the program was far less exciting, bordering on worrisome. Kiffin’s tone was somber.

His comments weren’t the confident banter Kiffin has become known for over the years; they almost seemed as if he were trying to tamp down expectations for the team’s upcoming season. When asked to reflect on how the spring went in Baton Rouge, here’s what Kiffin had to say: “I think the guys did a really good job of buying in, working hard, trying to do the right things, very little distractions from guys,” Kiffin responded, “I think we have a long ways to go with learning our systems inside and out, and making sure that we’re using players in the right spots and not just running our system because that’s what our system was. ” These aren't the overtly negative comments that Kiffin made earlier this spring, but they certainly don't exude the confidence that fans have come to expect over the past few months.

Kiffin also spent a fair amount of time discussing quarterback Sam Leavitt’s absence from the team-period portion of practice this spring. Leavitt has been at practice and even participated in 7-on-7 during Saturday’s scrimmage, but he hasn't appeared in live, full-speed reps. Kiffin said that not having Leavitt out there has given spring a certain “feeling,” and it doesn’t seem like a particularly good one.