To say there has been drama at LSU over the last eight or nine months would be an understatement.
That offseason, headlined by the hiring of Lane Kiffin away from Ole Miss, has drawn no shortage of criticism — much of it aimed squarely at LSU’s new head coach.
LSU’s Lane Kiffin Calls Him, Pat McAfee, the ‘Two Most Hated People’
The first College GameDay of the year broadcast from Kiffin’s new home of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, ahead of their matchup with the Clemson Tigers on Saturday night.
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Kiffin replaced Brian Kelly. LSU publicly talked about how much money they would spend and then did so, dominating the transfer portal and wrapping up their recruiting class.
Recently, they have brought players who appeared in NFL training camps and on NFL rosters to their team.
Kiffin joined the crew and discussed his move from Ole Miss to LSU, among many other things.
McAfee got right to it, telling Kiffin, “You got sued by the Southeastern Conference, what, just two days ago,” saying since he’s been at LSU, it’s been “chaos all the time.”
You got sued by the SEC @Lane_Kiffin 😂😂#CollegeGameDay pic.twitter.com/s7JZFJsob9
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) September 5, 2026
“That’s why I’ve really appreciated our friendship and this week your guidance with me because between you and I, we’re about the two most hated people there are,” Kiffin joked.
“This week you told me, ‘Hey, just focus on it, don’t worry about the noise.’ A lot of times to do great things, you’re going to be hated.”
McAfee has recently come under fire for the large amount of money he is making while ESPN has been laying off other employees.
That, along with McAfee recently seeming to show his political leanings despite wanting to maintain that he is most apolitical.
The hate certainly isn’t there for the same reasons or at the same level, but the comparison does make some sense. Of course, whether Kiffin was making a good-hearted joke to a friend or was generally annoyed by the question is something only they know.
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For now, Kiffin and LSU will get ready to take on Clemson in the biggest matchup, on paper, of week one.
Although their recent professional players won’t be playing after the SEC’s lawsuit, no program better represents the current Wild West era of college football than the Tigers.
