LSU Featured Twice On USA Today’s List Of 11 Games That Could Shape The CFP Race

LSU will have no shortage of opportunities to make a statement during Lane Kiffin’s first season in Baton Rouge.

USA Today recently identified 11 can’t-miss games that could help shape the College Football Playoff race in 2026, with the Tigers featured in two of the marquee matchups:

-No. 23 Clemson at No. 13 LSU, Sept. 5
-No. 13 LSU at No. 10 Ole Miss, Sept. 19

Here’s what USA Today had to say about both games:

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No. 23 Clemson at No. 13 LSU, Sept. 5
There is a chance for a reputation-changing win for Clemson, though the Tigers’ most obvious path to the playoff remains via an ACC championship. In terms of the postseason, there’s more on the line for LSU, which cannot afford to drop a nonconference game and still factor into an at-large berth given the new nine-game schedule in the SEC. Look for LSU to get better as Kiffin’s debut wears on, making this a potential upset opportunity for Clemson to open the regular season.

No. 13 LSU at No. 10 Ole Miss, Sept. 19
Lane Kiffin returns to Oxford in the most anticipated conference game of the season. For LSU, this is the second of three make-or-break games in September, sandwiched between the opener against Clemson and a home game the following Saturday against No. 8 Texas A&M. Taking two of three would buoy the Tigers’ playoff chances heading into an easy middle stretch of McNeese State, Kentucky, Mississippi State and Auburn.

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