TIGERhype

Don’t really care about the wrestling part!
But regarding football, I like the toughness and national exposure of the Big Ten, and LSU would fit right in from a football standpoint. But sending every LSU team to places like Oregon, Washington, Nebraska, and Penn State would be a logistical nightmare.

The Big 12 makes more sense geographically, but it would still feel like a step down from the SEC. The ACC might be the best cultural fit, with schools like Florida State, Miami, and Clemson, though its financial stability is a concern.

I’d probably lean ACC if it could stay together and offer a competitive deal. Otherwise, the Big 12 would be the safest and most practical choice.

The SEC technically has the authority to consider removing LSU. Its bylaws allow membership to be terminated with a two thirds vote, which would require at least 11 of the 16 presidents and chancellors.

But this feels almost entirely like theatrics by the SEC.

They are not seriously preparing to kick LSU out. They are putting the biggest possible threat on the table so they can argue in federal court that the conference, not a Louisiana judge, has the final authority to govern its members.

The SEC’s argument is that LSU voluntarily agreed to follow conference rules and cannot force the other schools to compete against players the SEC considers professionals. It is even making a First Amendment “freedom of association” argument.

That is not completely frivolous, but it feels extremely forced here.

LSU did not secretly play ineligible players. A Louisiana judge cleared the players to return and blocked the SEC from punishing LSU for using them. LSU still left them off the roster against Clemson.

Now that the SEC’s normal penalties have been blocked, it is threatening the nuclear option. That looks a lot like an attempt to work around the Louisiana court’s ruling.

Actually expelling LSU would also be beyond idiotic financially.

According to LSU’s FY2025 financial reports:

LSU athletics generated between $199 million and $223 million, depending on the accounting report
LSU football generated approximately $112 million


LSU reportedly averaged around 6.4 million viewers for its rated games in 2025, sixth nationally

The SEC distributed approximately $1.03 billion to its schools last year. That money depends on television inventory, major matchups, postseason success and fan interest. LSU is one of the brands helping create that value.

You do not remove LSU and simply replace it with another school. The SEC would lose a founding member, a massive fan base, a national television draw and valuable matchups against Bama, Georgia, Texas, Oklahoma, Florida and A&M.

It would also invite years of litigation over media rights, conference distributions, scheduling and whether LSU was expelled for following a court order.

Meanwhile, the Big Ten or Big 12 would probably answer LSU’s call immediately. Handing another conference LSU’s brand, Louisiana recruiting and the Baton Rouge/New Orleans market would be an unbelievable act of self destruction.

Moving forward, LSU appears to be in a solid position as long as it follows the court orders and acts carefully. I cannot imagine 11 university presidents voting to remove LSU over two players who have not appeared in a game.

This is the SEC putting on a show for the federal court after getting slapped down in Louisiana. The threat is technically available, but actually following through would be one of the dumbest financial decisions in college athletics history.

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And here's where PFF loses some polish once you consider game context.

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I agree the grade doesn’t look nearly as bad once you add the context. PFF isn’t gospel, it’s grading Woodland’s individual responsibility on each play, not how the defense performed as a whole

I wouldn’t say it’s only useful for grading linemen. If anything, offensive line can be one of the harder positions to grade without knowing the exact assignment. PFF isn’t gospel, but it’s still a useful data point at every position when you combine it with what you saw on the field.

I went back and checked the interior guys. PFF had Stephiylan Green at 66.3, Dominick McKinley at 64.9, Malik Blocton at 54.7, Deuce Geralds at 54.3 and Richard Anderson at 48.3. Green and McKinley were solid, but overall the interior didn’t grade nearly as well as the edge players or linebackers.

For context, PFF’s grading scale is roughly:

90+ Elite
80–89 Very good
70–79 Above average
60–69 Average
50–59 Below average
Below 50 Poor

So a grade in the low to mid 60s isn’t necessarily bad, but it isn’t a standout performance either. Generally, 70 or better is considered good, and 80 or better is an excellent game. With it being only one game, a couple of bad plays can move a player’s grade quite a bit.

I was surprised too. The current grades for the five starters were:

Bo Bordelon 64.2
Braelin Moore 62.7
Jordan Seaton 62.0
Aliou Bah 59.7
Weston Davis 58.4

Not terrible, but definitely lower than I expected after 644 yards of offense and no sacks allowed. Braelin Moore did have an 84.3 pass blocking grade, which stood out.

PFF counts pressures and individual losses even when they don’t turn into sacks. Leavitt’s mobility and the scheme probably helped cover up a few things too. I thought the line played pretty well watching the game, but apparently there’s still plenty to clean up. Either way, putting up 644 yards and keeping Leavitt clean is a pretty good place to start.

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Lotsa dudes got paid last year, too. How’d that turn out?

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That’s exactly my point. LSU spent a boatload on transfers last year too, and all it got us was a trip to the Texas Bowl and a cleaned out coaching staff.

UPDATE: PFF has revised the initial grades. The numbers below are the current grades and replace the preliminary top five list originally posted.

The updated PFF grades give a better picture of where LSU’s portal additions made their biggest impact:

Quarterback

Sam Leavitt 90.3
Landen Clark 83.2
Husan Longstreet 82.6

Running back

Dilin Jones 69.5
Caden Durham 56.0
Stacy Gage 55.1
Harlem Berry 54.5

Edge

Jordan Ross 94.0
Princewill Umanmielen 82.7
Dylan Carpenter 72.8

Linebacker

TJ Dottery 91.3
Davhon Keys 75.6
Whit Weeks 73.4

Receiver

Phillip Wright III 90.6
Winston Watkins Jr. 73.7
Corey Barber Jr. 62.6

Secondary

Ty Benefield 76.9
Ja’Keem Jackson 74.3
Tamarcus Cooley 69.2
DJ Pickett 66.0

Offensive line

Sean Thompkins Jr. 66.4
Bo Bordelon 64.2
William Satterwhite II 63.1
Braelin Moore 62.7
Jordan Seaton 62.0

Phillip Wright’s 90.6 came on only 14 snaps, so that needs some context. Still, the larger point remains: portal additions finished first at quarterback, running back, edge, linebacker and safety and took both of the top spots at edge.

LSU had legitimate returning talent, so these newcomers weren’t simply beating out scrubs. They immediately became some of the team’s best players at positions that can decide games.

Plenty of programs spent money in the portal. The interesting part is that LSU appears to have spent it on the right players.

Pretty interesting that LSU’s five highest PFF grades against Clemson all came from transfers.

1. Jordan Ross, EDGE 94.4
2. Sam Leavitt, QB 91.1
3. TJ Dottery, LB 88.2
4. Princewill Umanmielen, EDGE 83.2
5. Jordan Seaton, LT 78.8

You’re talking about the quarterback, left tackle, linebacker and two edge rushers, not rotational depth pieces, but players at some of the most important positions on the field.

High school recruiting will always be the foundation, but last night showed how quickly the portal can change a team’s ceiling when you evaluate well and bring in the right players. LSU doesn’t look anything like the same team without those additions.

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I think Durham is ahead of Berry but that’s a great problem to have

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Based on??

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That show is horrendous. All downhill since T-Bob left.

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T-Bob talked more about Lord of the Rings than he did sports, and has the maturity level of a 16 year old high school kid. I genuinely do not understand the love for that mouth breather.