LSU Tigers Overlooked in Latest 2026 SEC Power Rankings

The Tigers will be looking to prove a lot of folks wrong with the latest drop of the 2026 SEC power rankings.

Dec 1, 2025; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU new head coach Lane Kiffin speaks at South Stadium Club at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

It's a new day for the LSU Tigers football program. After a 5-3 start to last season, it was clear that former head coach Brian Kelly wasn't the right fit for the program. So, the athletic department went out to get the biggest fish they could reel in: Lane Kiffin.

Kiffin led the Ole Miss Rebels to historic highs last season, and the new goal is to put another team in the College Football Playoff this upcoming season. But will the Tigers have the talent to do that?

Recently, Chris Low of On3 shared his 2026 SEC power rankings. Low's judgment of the Tigers is fair, but something tells us the team's ranking may light a fire under their new head coach.

Midde Of The Pack?

ASU Sun Devils quarterback Sam Leavitt (10) scrambles away from Houston Cougars defensive lineman Eddie Walls III (90) at Mountain America Stadium in Tempe on Oct. 25, 2025. | Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Low ranked the Tigers as the sixth-best team in the SEC coming into the 2026 season.

The Lane Kiffin era in Baton Rouge begins in earnest this fall, although he’s already made plenty of noise on and off the field. Kiffin said No. 1-ranked transfer quarterback Sam Leavitt. should be fully cleared by preseason camp after having two surgeries on his foot. He suffered a Lisfranc injury last October, which is a factor in the Tigers’ ranking heading into the season," wrote Low.

Leavitt's foot injury is a fair concern coming into the season. The former Sun Devils quarterback appeared in just seven games this past season. A team's season almost always goes as far as a quarterback can take them. The Tigers will need a 100% Leavitt to make some noise in 2026.

The Brighter Side

Florida Gators wide receiver Eugene Wilson III (3) catches a pass for a touchdown score during the first quarter of an NCAA football game, Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025, at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. Georgia held off Florida 24-20. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

As fans anxiously wait to see how Leavitt will perform coming off of a major injury, Low also praised the talent Kiffin brought in for his first year in Baton Rouge.

"Kiffin, the self-proclaimed portal king, brought in several coveted additions – offensive tackle Jordan Seaton (Colorado), receiver Eugene Wilson III (Florida), edge rushers Princewill Umanmielen (Ole Miss) and Jordan Ross (Tennessee) and safety Ty Benefield (Boise State). Continuity in the offensive line will be key for the Tigers, although 6-7 tight end Trey’Dez Green is the kind of mismatch in the passing game that fixes a lot of problems," Low wrote.

The Tigers are entering the 2026 season with a top-five transfer portal class. Mix that with some of the talent already on the team, and Kiffin's first squad could easily shatter the glass ceiling of a preseason number six ranking in the SEC.

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