USA TODAY Sports projects Clemson football, ACC rivals 2025 football record … 2025
CLEMSON, S.C. — Weeks from now, as the 2025 college football season chaos unfolds, fans will look back on LSU’s gritty 17-10 win over No.
6 Clemson as the game that saved the SEC’s playoff hopes—and launched LSU into the national championship conversation.
“These are big wins, no doubt,”
LSU head coach Brian Kelly said after the victory. He couldn’t have known just how big at the time.
While LSU was grinding out a road win against a top-five opponent, No. 1 Texas fell to Ohio State, and Alabama—the longtime SEC powerhouse—was upset by Florida State. When told of the losses, LSU linebacker Whit Weeks was stunned.
“Really? Wow,” he said, pausing before asking, “Wait, how bad did Alabama lose again?”
It was bad. Really bad.
Why LSU’s Win Matters for the SEC
The SEC has watched the Big Ten claim the last two national championships, with no SEC team even reaching the final. Now, LSU—the team that hadn’t won a season opener since 2019 when Joe Burrow led them to glory—has given the conference new life.
Kelly had said all offseason this was his best LSU team yet, but what he didn’t say was that this group was different:
Tough.
Smart.
This win wasn’t about flashy offense. It was about defense—a part of LSU’s game that had struggled in recent years and finally rose to the challenge.
LSU’s Defense Delivers Statement Performance
LSU defensive coordinator Blake Baker summed it up best: ‘We want the outcome of the game resting on our defense. LSU defensive coordinator Blake Baker put it simply: ‘Our defense wants the game decided in our hands
And they got exactly that.
Clemson’s explosive offense was held to 261 total yards.
Just 31 rushing yards on 20 carries.
By the time linebacker Harold Perkins Jr. deflected a crucial fourth-down pass late in the game, LSU had made its point: this defense could carry them through the SEC gauntlet.
That’s a stunning turnaround for a team that two years ago wasted a Heisman season from Jayden Daniels with a poor defense, then followed up with one of the worst defensive units in LSU history last year.
Even after two costly offensive fumbles—including one at Clemson’s 12-yard line—the defense refused to break, limiting the Tigers to field goals and keeping LSU in control.
LSU Now a Serious College Football Playoff Contender
With Alabama’s loss and Texas showing vulnerability, LSU’s win over Clemson may have singlehandedly kept the SEC in the College Football Playoff hunt.
If this defense keeps playing like this, Brian Kelly’s Tigers might not just save the SEC—they could dominate it.
As the players left the field for halftime, LSU head coach Brian Kelly looked toward the scoreboard, knowing the harsh reality: Clemson’s Dabo Swinney held a 115-11 career record when leading at halftime
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“I told our guys, well, it’s going to have to be 115-12,” Kelly said. “Because there was no other choice.”
Just as LSU’s offense had no other option, its revamped defense also faced a must-stop situation late in the game.Clemson was driving for the win, but Kelly had prepared his During fall camp, players repeatedly practiced this exact scenario, running countless two-minute drills to prepare for making crucial defensive stops under pressure.
This LSU defense—rebuilt with key transfer portal additions—answered the call, saving both a season opener and perhaps the SEC’s reputation on a weekend when Florida State embarrassed Alabama, Ohio State stunned Texas and Arch Manning, and the mighty SEC looked vulnerable in nonconference matchups.
LSU Defense Shows Championship DNA
LSU needed this win badly. On opening weekend, the SEC risked going 0-3 in marquee games, with nothing but blowout wins over lesser opponents to point to—one of which literally had “Sharks” as a mascot.
But LSU showed up when it mattered most, proving it wasn’t just a team collecting bowl-game wins. Instead, it looked like a program built to win big games and close out opponents with authority.
The defense Brian Kelly focused on all offseason proved to be the difference.
By the time Clemson’s high-powered offense got the ball back with only 1:46 left, it had barely crossed the 200-yard mark. The final drive ended when Harold Perkins Jr. pressured the quarterback into an errant throw at the LSU 15.
It was just one of many forced errors by a relentless LSU pass rush, a unit that finally delivered the kind of physical SEC football fans expect: a game built on willpower, toughness, and execution rather than viral moments or empty talk.
Transfer Additions and Key Returnees Fuel LSU’s Turnaround
Kelly’s focus on defense paid off thanks to impact transfers like Jack Pyburn, Patrick Payton, Mansoor Delane, and Tamarcus Cooley, along with the return of Perkins Jr. to his dominant freshman form.
On offense, quarterback Garrett Nussmeier finished with 230 passing yards, finally cracking Clemson’s defense in the second half. Even a blown call that erased a touchdown couldn’t stop LSU once the momentum shifted.
This win was a huge momentum shift and a major confidence boost,’
Nussmeier said following the game.
For LSU—and a suddenly shaky SEC—this victory might be the spark that changes everything in the 2025 college football season.
