The LSU Coach Fans Aren't Talking About Enough

The LSU Tigers will be rolling into 2026 with plenty of hype and expectations as the Lane Kiffin era in Baton Rouge sits under two months away from beginning when the Tigers begin their season against the Clemson Tigers on September 5.

The Tigers made the biggest splash in the coaching carousel, landing Kiffin, who brought in a plethora of players to create a roster that will look to compete in 2026 and built a coaching staff that will be tasked with getting those players up to speed and rolling once the season begins.

And the LSU coaching staff that Kiffin assembled for his first year in Baton Rouge has some of the top assistants in the country; however, one of those coaches deserves a lot more recognition and hype around his name.

LSU's Running Backs Coach is a Proven Difference Maker

LSU Tigers running back Harlem Berry 22, LSU Tigers take on the Arkansas Razorbacks. November 15, 2025; Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA; at Tiger Stadium. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

The conversation around the LSU coaching staff obviously begins with offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr., who followed Kiffin from Oxford, and defensive coordinator Blake Baker, who stayed with the new regime.

However, one of the biggest names on Kiffin's staff heading into 2026 is associate head coach and running backs coach Kevin Smith. Smith is no stranger to working under Kiffin, as the running back coach is headed into his ninth season with LSU's head coach.

Smith has eight years of experience coaching Kiffin's offense, spending three seasons as the running backs coach at Florida Atlantic when Kiffin was the head coach there. When Kiffin left for Ole Miss, Smith followed suit and spent two seasons before leaving in 2022. And after a one-year absence, he returned to Oxford in 2023 and has been a vital part of Kiffin's staff ever since.

"He's very intense out there," Kiffin said in a spring availability. "Love having him around...such a really big part of establishing our culture now that he's been with us really the whole time except for one year."

During his tenure at Ole Miss, Smith helped coach NFL running back Quinshon Judkins to back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons, and in 2023, the Rebels were fifth in the SEC in rushing offense and scored 29 touchdowns on the ground, which was the fifth most in Ole Miss history.

And in Smith's last season at Ole Miss, the Rebels' rushing attack was one of the best in the country and helped running back Kewan Lacy become one of the top running backs in the country and in Ole Miss program history.

In 2025, Lacy finished the year with 1,567 rushing yards, tying Judkins' 2022 record while also breaking the single-season record in all-purpose yardage and rushing for 22 touchdowns, which ranked No. 2 in FBS and set a new Ole Miss rushing touchdown record.

Smith is a proven developer of talent and will have plenty to work with in LSU's running back room with returning standout sophomore Harlem Berry and veteran Caden Durham. The new LSU running backs coach will look for the same success he's had under Kiffin in other programs.

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news.

Add us as a preferred source on Google