Lane Kiffin's big-game struggles: LSU coach has history of failure when leading top-10 team vs. ranked foe
Lane Kiffin’s big-game struggles: LSU coach has history of failure when leading top-10 team vs. ranked foe originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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There is no doubt Lane Kiffin can energize a locker room, and there is no doubt he can coach up an offense.
For LSU, that isn’t going to be enough. A national championship is the expectation in Baton Rouge, whether that’s in year one, year two, or some point in the years that follow.
If Kiffin’s track record as a top-10 team is any indication, winning the big games shouldn’t be taken as a given. LSU’s faceplant against Kiffin’s former team on Saturday goes down as another big-game loss for the highly-paid coach, and this loss might be the most painful yet given the circumstances.
Here’s a look at Kiffin’s struggles against ranked teams when leading a top-10 squad.
MORE:Lane Kiffin jeered by Ole Miss fans after arrival in Oxford
Lane Kiffin record when leading top 10 vs. ranked opponents
Kiffin is now just 1-7 when facing a ranked opponent as a top-10 team in his head coaching career. Here’s a look at every game:
| Season | School | Ranking | Opponent | Result |
| 2012 | USC | No. 2 | No. 21 Stanford | L, 21-14 |
| 2021 | Ole Miss | No. 10 | No. 18 Auburn | L, 31-20 |
| 2021 | Ole Miss | No. 8 | No. 6 Baylor | L, 21-7 |
| 2023 | Ole Miss | No. 10 | No. 1 Georgia | L, 52-17 |
| 2024 | Ole Miss | No. 9 | No. 13 LSU | L, 29-26 |
| 2025 | Ole Miss | No. 5 | No. 9 Georgia | L, 43-35 |
| 2025 | Ole Miss | No. 8 | No. 13 Oklahoma | W, 34-26 |
| 2026 | LSU | No. 7 | No. 8 Ole Miss | L, 32-24 |
Kiffin only had one such game — a loss — while at USC, facing No. 21 Stanford as the No. 2 team in the country early in a memorably disappointing 2012 season. At Ole Miss, Kiffin started 0-5 in such games, including two losses to Georgia, before finally beating a ranked opponent as a top-10 team with a win over Oklahoma last season.
Now at LSU, Kiffin had a chance to make it two in a row but lost as the slight favorite on the road in Oxford, dropping to 1-7 in such games.
Lane Kiffin overall record vs. ranked opponents
Kiffin is 13-26 in his career against ranked opponents. Here’s the full breakdown:
| Team | Record vs. ranked opponents |
| Tennessee | 1-3 |
| USC | 2-7 |
| FAU | 0-5 |
| Ole Miss | 10-10 |
| LSU | 0-1 |
| Overall | 13-26 |
Kiffin started his head coaching career 3-15 against ranked opponents, going just 2-7 in such games at USC and finishing 0-5 in such games at FAU, which is no surprise given the Owls are not a power-conference program.
At Ole Miss, Kiffin proved that a 3-15 record wasn’t totally representative of his ability. He went 10-10 against ranked opponents with the Rebels, holding his own against some of the SEC’s powerhouses at a school that historically hasn’t been one of them.
Now at LSU, Kiffin is hoping for much greater achievements than ranked wins, so an 0-1 start in that department isn’t what he envisioned.
LSU remaining schedule
| Date | Matchup | Time (ET) |
| Sept. 26 | vs. Texas A&M | 7:30 p.m. |
| Oct. 3 | vs. McNeese | 7:45 p.m. |
| Oct. 10 | at Kentucky | TBD |
| Oct. 17 | vs. Mississippi State | TBD |
| Oct. 24 | at Auburn | 12 p.m. |
| Nov. 7 | vs. Alabama | TBD |
| Nov. 14 | vs. Texas | TBD |
| Nov. 21 | at Tennessee | TBD |
| Nov. 28 | at Arkansas | TBD |
LSU will head back home to Baton Rouge to host a reeling Texas A&M team next Saturday, after the Aggies suffered a home upset at the hands of Kentucky.
The Tigers don’t have it as bad as some other SEC teams, but they still have to face Alabama and Texas at home before going on the road at Tennessee during their toughest stretch of the season in November.
