If the 2025 college football season taught us anything, it's that anything is possible.
On Monday night, the Indiana Hoosiers completed a miraculous season that culminated in the school's first ever National Championship. The new era of NIL and the transfer portal has completely changed the landscape of college football, which has the field of title contenders as wide open as ever.
Lane Kiffin's portal moves continue to break the hearts of Ole Miss fans everywhere
Now that the 2025 season is officially in the books, it's never too early to start looking ahead to 2026. The LSU Football program has undergone major changes over the last few months, as the Lane Kiffin era is officially underway. With all of the changes in Baton Rouge, the Tigers are already receiving high praise in way-too-early Top 25 rankings for the 2026 season.
LSU cracks the top 10 in Saturday Blitz's way-too-early Top 25 rankings for 2026
LSU is ranked No. 7 in Saturday Blitz's way-too-early Top 25 rankings for the 2026 season. Texas claimed the top spot, with Oregon at No. 2, Ohio State at No. 3, Notre Dame at No. 4, Indiana at No. 5, and Georgia at No. 6. Following LSU at No. 7, Texas Tech comes in at No. 8, Texas A&M is No. 9, and Michigan rounds out the top 10.
The Brian Kelly era ended in major disappointment, but LSU fans have a lot to be excited about for 2026. Kiffin's tenure is off to a strong start, as he signed 14 players during the Early Signing Period including a pair of 5-stars in Lamar Brown and Richard Anderson.
Known as the Portal King, Kiffin has brought in 39 players through the portal (so far), with LSU's portal class being ranked No. 1 in the country by 247Sports. The portal class is headlined by QB Sam Leavitt, who brings a dynamic dual threat skill set to the Tiger offense. Other key additions include WR Jayce Brown, DE Jordan Ross, LB TJ Dottery, S Ty Benefield and EDGE Princewill Umanmielen.
Kiffin also retained several key playmakers from the 2025 team. Most notably, TE Trey'Dez Green, RB Caden Durham, and RB Harlem Berry will all return to the Tiger offense with Leavitt at the helm. Blake Baker's defense also retains key pieces in LB Whit Weeks, CB DJ Pickett, S Tamarcus Cooley, CB PJ Woodland, and S Dashawn Spears.
LSU hasn't qualified for the College Football Playoff since 2019, but as it stands, the Tigers are firmly in the National Championship conversation for 2026. The new-look Tigers start the 2026 season on Saturday, September 5 by welcoming the Clemson Tigers to Death Valley.