By GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor
LSU is grouped with the likes of Florida, Missouri and Ole Miss on the second tier of the Southeastern Conference for the time being, said Caroline Fenton on Tiger Rag Radio on Tuesday night.
“My reservation is Sam Leavitt and the passing game,” Fenton said. “When Sam Leavitt is on, it’s such a blast to watch. He can be explosive, and what he does with his legs will be why LSU wins a lot of games. But it’s the turnovers.”
Leavitt, the redshirt junior transfer quarterback from Arizona State and No. 1 player in the 2026 transfer portal, has thrown seven interceptions on the season. That is a large part of the reason why he is ranked a below average 55th in the nation and ninth in the SEC in efficiency at 148.9 on 92-of-139 passing for 1,221 yards and eight touchdowns. He has rushed for 220 yards on the season on 45 carries and scored six touchdowns.
“He’s got to get a hold of the interceptions,” Fenton said. “Don’t put the ball in harm’s way.”
Leavitt has been hampered by a hamstring injury in his last two games, but he expects to be at 100 percent when the No. 10 Tigers (4-1, 1-1 SEC) play at No. 25 Kentucky (4-1, 2-1 SEC) on Saturday (6 p.m., ESPN).
Fenton has No. 2 Georgia (5-0, 3-0 SEC), No. 6 Alabama (5-0, 3-0 SEC) and No. 1 Texas (4-0, 1-0 SEC) in the top tier of the SEC in that order. Georgia and Alabama meet Saturday at 6:30 p.m. on ABC, and Fenton is picking Georgia to win that game.
“Texas doesn’t look like the best team in the country,” she said. “The defensie is elite, but Arch Manning has some issues.”
Manning is a pedestrian No. 72 in the nation in passing efficiency at 141.3 for 10th in the SEC as he has only thrown for 862 yards on 73-of-115 passing with three interceptions and seven touchdowns.
“He doesn’t look like the NFL number one overall pick or a franchise savior,” Fenton said.
How Kentucky football fans staged perhaps the most premature celebration in sports history. https://t.co/dbA0nfEa26
— Glenn Guilbeau (@SportBeatTweet) October 7, 2026
LSU will get its chance to move up to the top tier as it hosts Alabama on Nov. 7 and Texas on Nov. 14. And if it can duplicate what it did at Ole Miss in the second half on Sept. 19, it has a chance. The Tigers came back from a 24-7 halftime deficit to tie 24-24 before losing 32-24.
I always miss Louisiana. But this time of year, when it smells like college football in the air, makes me miss my home a lil bit extra.
— Caroline Fenton (@carolinefenton1) August 30, 2026
“If LSU is what they did in that third quarter against Ole Miss, LSU is not just a playoff contender, it is a national title contender,” Fenton said. “Because they got smacked in the face on the road in a really rowdy environment. And they came out of the locker room and had that kind of comeback. That shows resilience. That shows offensive firepower. That shows what they can do to stop a Heisman Trophy quarterback in Trinidad Chambliss.”
Fenton particularly likes LSU’s defense under coordinator Blake Baker even with the injuries to defensive back Dashawn Spears at the star position (out for the year with knee injury suffered at Ole Miss), and linebacker Whit Weeks, who may return late in the season after having surgery for a broken fibula suffered against Texas A&M on Sept. 26.
“LSU has an elite defense,” she said. “They have completely taken the run away from teams. LSU’s defense has made life hell for opponents except Trinidad Chambliss at Ole Miss. I think they’ll be able to overcome the injuries. That’s where Blake Baker comes in. Blake Baker is one of the best defensive minds in college football. This is where he earns his money.”
The ingredients are there for LSU to make the College Football Playoff.
“Running the football checks a box,” Fenton said. “Dominating inferior opponents checks a box. Their pressure on quarterbacks and taking away a quarterback’s legs away from him checks a box. That shows me LSU has the makings of a playoff team.”
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