Kirk Herbstreit Issues Transfer Portal Warning to Lane Kiffin, Mike Elko

Both teams enter Tiger Stadium at 0-1 in SEC play, and a second league loss before October would put the loser's College Football Playoff hopes in danger.

ESPN College GameDay analyst Kirk Herbstreit | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

ESPN College GameDay analyst Kirk Herbstreit says the loser of Saturday's Texas A&M vs. LSU game in Baton Rouge could see its players lose interest in the season and start planning their next move through the transfer portal.

Herbstreit made the comment Friday on ESPN's "Get Up." Host Mike Greenberg said, "People are calling this essentially a de facto playoff game," before asking Herbstreit for his keys to No. 23 Texas A&M at No. 10 LSU.

Kirk Herbstreit on transfer portal fears

What’s at stake for LSU and Texas A&M tomorrow?@KirkHerbstreit answers 👀 pic.twitter.com/oj7H1w3ERo

— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) September 25, 2026

Herbstreit tied his warning to the SEC in the era of name, image and likeness pay and the transfer portal.

"Whoever loses this game is going to have a team that is going to start having their agents talking about, 'Where am I going to go?'" Herbstreit said. "The SEC, I think way more than any other conference, when their players are out of the, quote-unquote, playoff, they lose interest quickly and they start thinking about their next season."

The ESPN analyst said the pressure falls hardest on the losing coach, whether that's LSU coach Lane Kiffin or Texas A&M coach Mike Elko.

"So there is a lot at stake in this game because the loser, I think, as a coach, is going to have a hard time looking into those eyes standing in front of him," Herbstreit said. "That's the sad thing, at Week 4, to face that kind of potential reality."

Herbstreit has alluded to his perceived SEC player tendency to hit the portal when discussing the differences between the Big Ten and SEC.

While on the Dan Patrick Show this summer, he said, "I think in this new era that we're in, I think the Big Ten has proven to do a better job of keeping their players more invested in their team."

But, in his estimation, that's not the case for SEC players. "As soon as they're out of the playoff, I feel like they're telling their agent, 'I'm out of here.'"

How did Texas A&M, LSU lose?

Texas A&M quarterback Marcel Reed | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Both teams are 2-1 overall and 0-1 in SEC play after losing last weekend.

LSU lost 32-24 at Ole Miss despite the Tigers rallying from 24-7 down to tie it in the fourth quarter.

Texas A&M fell 31-21 at home to Kentucky. Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed completed 33 of 54 passes for 265 yards with two interceptions.

"One of the best things about life is that you can learn lessons about how to get kicked in the face and how to keep going and get up," the Aggies coach said. "Now we've got to get up and go to Baton Rouge and we've got to pull it together."

A second SEC loss would drop the loser to 0-2 in league play before October. Both teams still have Alabama, Texas and Tennessee on their schedules.

Texas A&M visits LSU Saturday night

LSU head coach Lane Kiffin | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC at Tiger Stadium. Texas A&M has won the last two meetings, including a 49-25 win in Baton Rouge last season, but LSU is 25-2 in its last 27 home night games.

Kiffin singled out Reed, who ran for 80 yards against Kentucky. "Our ability to contain him is going to be such a critical piece of this game," the first-year LSU coach said.

The Aggies will play without wide receiver Terry Bussey, who is out for the season with a lower-body injury.