‘The scary part for everybody else’ – ESPN’s Greg McElroy leaves absolutely no doubt on how he feels about LSU right now
The LSU Tigers probably need to win out to lock down a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff.
The LSU Tigers are among a cluster of two loss SEC teams as we enter the home stretch of the 2026 season.
LSU, Alabama, Tennessee, Florida, Ole Miss, Texas, and Missouri all have two losses, all probably need to win out to lock down a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff (Kentucky and Georgia both have one loss).
Several of those teams play each other in November, so much of the chaos will sort itself out.
LSU, in fact, plays three of those teams in the first three weeks of November (Alabama, Texas, and Tennessee).
That’s bad news for those teams because LSU, according to ESPN’s Greg McElroy, is the scariest team in the SEC right now.
“The LSU Tigers are the team I would least like to see on the opposing sideline,” said McElroy. “Because they have the No. 1 defense in the country. Not just in the SEC — I’m talking in the entire country. The Tigers have allowed 17 points or fewer in six of their eight games. They shut out Mississippi State. They held Texas A&M to six points. They held Clemson to 10 points. They are fifth in game control, and the offense is only 21st in efficiency.
“So when you look at them, though, look at where that offense has gone the last couple weeks. Look at where that offense is beginning to take strides. Look at how much more comfortable their quarterback Sam Leavitt is. Remember, he missed the spring. He missed the summer while coming back from a foot injury. Now he’s gotten the reps, and the passing game is taking the next step. So yeah, the defense doesn’t need a lot of help, but the offense is starting to give it to them now. Their two losses came on the road by a combined nine points. … The scary part for everybody else is that LSU is probably prepping to play their best ball of the season, in the final month of the season, because of all the new pieces — all the young players — that are playing prominent roles. They also have the hardest remaining schedule in the country: Alabama on November 7, Texas on November 14, at Tennessee on November 21. Three teams on this list still have to play maybe the scariest team on the schedule. Good luck to all three. It’s going to be amazing to watch.”
LSU had some tough losses early in the season, but all of their goals are still very much attainable.
It won’t be easy, but the Tigers are right where you hope to be when you get to November — they control their own destiny.
