The 2026 college football season begins just like it did last year for two historic programs, as the Clemson Tigers head south for a date with the LSU Tigers on Saturday, Sept. 5. LSU won last year's matchup at Clemson 17-10 in a game that, at the time, saw each Tigers squad ranked in the top 10. Neither side would finish even in the top 25 as both went 7-6, and LSU fired Brian Kelly midseason before poaching Lane Kiffin from rival Ole Miss.
LSU is No. 11 in the preseason AP poll, and Clemson is the first team out of the top 25. Kickoff for Clemson at LSU is set for 7:30 p.m. LSU and more college football games with the FanDuel promo code to receive bonus bets: LSU is a 10.5-point favorite, per the latest FanDuel Sportsbook odds, and the Over/Under for total points scored is 50.5.
LSU is trying to establish itself as an SEC contender right away under Kiffin, while Dabo Swinney is trying to get his Tigers moving back in the right direction in an ACC that's looking for a clear No. 2 option behind Miami. If you're interested in betting on college football games like Clemson vs. LSU on the best betting apps, make sure to check out our picks for this matchup.
And also be sure to check out what SportsLine experts and the SportsLine Projection Model have to say. How will Kiffin kick off this new era of LSU football? Oddsmakers expect it to be a resounding win for LSU in this season opener, and it does make sense why that's the case.
Kiffin is controversial, to say the least, and his exit from Ole Miss to LSU amid the Rebels' CFP run rubbed many the wrong way. But there's a reason LSU made Kiffin one of the nation's highest-paid coaches -- the guy wins. Kiffin won 10+ games twice in three years at Florida Atlantic and had four 10+ win seasons over six years at Ole Miss.
He's a talented recruiter and coach, and paired with LSU's recruiting prowess, he should have the Tigers competitive as soon as this season. The Tigers will lean on a new quarterback in Sam Leavitt after he played very well for Arizona State the last few years. As for Clemson, its head coach, Swinney, is also a bit controversial, especially in today's era of college football.
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