Getty Image / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
The Kalshi logo sits in a photo of LSU Tigers head coach Lane Kiffin speaks to the press during SEC Football Kickoff Media Day at the Tampa Marriott.
If you’re already feeling uneasy about the current state of college athletics, now might be a good time to look away.
The LSU Tigers, perhaps more than any school in the nation, have pushed the boundaries of current NCAA and SEC rules across several sports, so much so that Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry even got involved.
But now, according to a report from In Game, which covers sports betting across the United States, the school has taken things to a new level to insulate itself from paying out bonuses to football coach Lane Kiffin.
A third party helping LSU hedge against potential bonus payments to football coach Lane Kiffin used bets on the team’s performance on Kalshi to offset exposure.
Similar trades were placed last month on South Carolina’s football team, again from a third party rather than the… pic.twitter.com/wHBmsFqQzE
— InGame (@InGameHQ) August 28, 2026
The LSU Tigers Signed Lane Kiffin To A Monster Contract
The Tigers had a disappointing season in 2025, going 7-6 in the fourth season of the Brian Kelly Era, a season that saw Kelly fired halfway through.
To make sure that never happens ago, they pursued Kiffin, who had turned the Ole Miss Rebels into one of the top programs in the country and was clearly unafraid to be aggressive with NIL and the transfer portal to build his roster.
After a seemingly endless saga that featured Kiffin making himself out to be a tragic figure, he ultimately ditched Ole Miss prior to their College Football Playoff run and signed a massive deal that put him among the highest-paid coaches in the country.
Kiffin Could Make Even More Money, Which The Tigers Seem Worried About
On the surface, Kiffin’s deal comes in at seven years and $91 million, for an average of $13 million per season. But the contract also includes bonuses that could amount to as much as $3 million for winning the national championship.
Sure, LSU would love for Kiffin and the Tigers to return to the top of the college football world. But you know what it wouldn’t love? Paying all that extra money.
That’s where Game Point Capital comes in, according to the report from In Game‘s Daniel O’Boyle.
The company, which works with schools to hedge against large financial risks, reportedly placed five “block” trades with Kalshi on LSU having a successful season.
The trades were made off the market. And they were worth a combined $3 million, the exact amount of Kiffin’s maximum bonus.
Kalshi prohibits any team employee from making bets on their own team. Which is why LSU needed to find a proxy to operate on its behalf.
The trades were reportedly worth between $300,000 and $900,000 each, and involved betting on LSU to make the playoff and advance through each successive round.
LSU Isn’t Alone In This Business
The one thing the Tigers can rest their heads on is the fact that they’re not the only school operating in this space.
According to the report, multiple similar trades were made on the South Carolina Gamecocks to insulate them against potential bonus payouts to head coach Shane Beamer. Although those trades were worth far less money and involved South Carolina simply winning eight games. Which is honestly a little embarrassing for the Gamecocks, if you ask us.
Two weeks ago, five “block” trades — trades negotiated off exchange — were placed on LSU to have a successful college football season, worth a combined $3 million.
The total combined payout of $3 million if LSU won the national championship is exactly equal to Kiffin’s national…
— InGame (@InGameHQ) August 28, 2026
If you want to look on the bright side of all of this, at least the schools are backing their own success rather than betting against it. And college football isn’t the first sport where this type of move has taken place.
But it still paints an extremely bleak picture of the way that college sports are headed.