LSU has been at the center of the college football landscape since Lane Kiffin’s hiring. Despite the No. 5 transfer portal class per On3, an unsettling reality surrounding Sam Leavitt is brewing in Baton Rouge.
How Sam Leavitt’s Health Impacts Lane Kiffin’s First Season at LSU
LSU insider and veteran radio host Matt Moscona appeared on “The Garland Gillen Show” and issued a stark warning regarding the team’s championship aspirations, centering entirely on the health of Leavitt.
Despite the immense talent flanking the roster, Moscona made it clear that if Leavitt cannot remain on the field, Kiffin’s debut season will quickly spiral into disappointment for Tiger fans.
“You can have talent on both sides of the ball everywhere,” Moscona argued. “If you don’t have the engine in the car, it’s not going to go, and you saw that with LSU football in 2025. Leavitt has a really significant injury. That Lisfranc thing is real.”
“And if he’s 100% and the guy he was two years ago that led Arizona State to the College Football Playoff, yeah, this team can be a double-digit win team in the playoff and can go compete to win a national championship.”
The dynamic transfer quarterback arrives with immense pedigree, having won the Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year award in 2024 while throwing for 2,885 yards and 24 touchdowns at Arizona State. He has proven he can be the engine of a high-octane offense. The problem, however, is whether Leavitt is physically durable.
Though Lane Kiffin recently offered an encouraging update, stating Leavitt hit a scorching 21 mph on the GPS during recent rehab runs, a Lisfranc injury remains an unpredictable shadow for a mobile quarterback whose game relies heavily on explosive extension and pocket navigation.
The ultimate ceiling for Lane Kiffin’s Tigers completely hinges on which version of Leavitt takes the field on Sept. 5 against Clemson. However, if the foot flares up and forces Leavitt to miss even a short stretch of SEC games, the floor drops exponentially.
“If Sam Leavitt is not healthy and they have to play Landen Clark or Husan Longstreet, this is a 7 or 8 win football team. They just will not have enough at the most important position in organized team sports to be great this year. It’s all about Sam,” Moscona added.
“If you tell me Sam Leavitt is healthy, is peak Sam Leavitt, I think they’re a playoff team. If he is not, I think this will be a really disappointing fall for LSU fans,” he concluded.
Until Sam Leavitt proves his foot can withstand the grueling rigors of an SEC schedule, the entire season remains a high-stakes gamble. Currently, PFSN’s CFB Playoff Meter gives the Tigers a 39.2% chance to make the College Football Playoff.
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