Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
Nov 7, 2026; Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA; LSU Tigers head coach Lane Kiffin reacts during the second half against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Tiger Stadium.
The LSU Tigers and first-year head coach Lane Kiffin saw their College Football Playoff hopes take a huge hit this past weekend with a 31-13 home loss at the hands of the rival Alabama Crimson Tide.
The loss dropped LSU to 6-3 on the season and kept Kiffin winless against Alabama in his career. But the polarizing head coach isn’t losing hope, and he’s not letting his players lose hope either.
Instead, he sent an interesting message to them in the locker room this week ahead of this week’s matchup with Texas that could either kill or revive their playoff hopes.
The newest messaging inside the #LSU football ops building this morning 48 hours after the Tigers lost to Alabama. https://t.co/QxD9BMzJd3
— Cory Diaz (@ByCoryDiaz) November 9, 2026
Lane Kiffin Tells LSU Players They’re Now The Villain In Lengthy Message
Kiffin has never had any issue playing the villain. That dates back to his time at Tennessee, and continued through stops at USC, Alabama, Ole Miss, and now LSU.
Meanwhile, the Tigers seemingly took on the villain role with their constant attempts to roster former NFL players. But according to Kiffin, only now, after the loss to Alabama, have they truly become villains.
“To every player and employee:
You just experienced something that comes with being at LSU. When you win, everybody loves you. When you lose, everybody has an opinion. The media questions you. The fans criticize you. People who have never done what you do tell you what you can’t do.
WELCOME TO LSU and THE DARK SIDE OF BEING THE VILLAIN!
You don’t get to play on the biggest stage and expect everybody to applaud you.
You don’t get the privilege of wearing this jersey without carrying the weight that comes with it.
But here’s what I need you to understand:
Their opinions are not your identity.
Their criticism doesn’t define you. Their disappointment doesn’t diminish you. And their noise doesn’t get to determine what happens next.
You have two choices.
You can spend the week defending yourself, explaining yourself, feeling sorry for yourself, and listening to everybody who thinks you’re finished.
Or you can get back to work.
You cannot control what they say. You cannot control what they write. You cannot control what they think. But you damn sure can control how you respond.
The noise will eventually stop. The headlines will change. The opinions will move on to somebody else. But what you build inside this locker room will stay with you.
Let them talk. Let them doubt. Let them question.
You have work to do.
Now go earn the right to feel differently about yourselves.
Remember who you are. Remember what you’ve put into this. Remember the standard you established before anybody started criticizing you.
Don’t run from the embarrassment. Don’t hide from the disappointment. Don’t make excuses for it.
Own it. Learn from it. Get better because of it.” – Lane Kiffin message to LSU
It seems a little late to play the “everybody is against us” card. But who knows, maybe it works. After all, Kiffin needs to try something after a first season in Baton Rouge that is looking increasingly disappointing.