LSU vs. Clemson live updates: Tigers clash in primetime as Lane Kiffin era kicks off in Baton Rouge

Perhaps you've heard, but there's been quite a bit going on around LSU over the last nine months or so. It turns out the soap opera about hiring Lane Kiffin away from Ole Miss when the Rebels were in the midst of a playoff run didn't end as soon as the Kiffin hire became official. That's the thing about hiring Lane Kiffin: the distractions are never temporary. Once one fades from the spotlight, a new one emerges from the dark.

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Tom Fornelli

The looming threat of SEC penalties has slowed LSU's plan to roster former NFL players Xzavian Harris and Dae'Quan Wright. After a legal victory cleared the way for LSU to add Harris and Wright, the team chose not to do so ahead of its season opener against Clemson, and Lane Kiffin said lingering uncertainty was the reason why.

Lane Kiffin says 'uncertainties' prevented LSU from rostering ex-NFL players in Week 1 vs. Clemson

Austin Nivison

The lightning In the Baton Rouge area has delayed kickoff. A new kick time has not been scheduled. The original kickoff was scheduled for 7:49 p.m. ET.

LSU is under a lightning delay, which has affected pregame warmups. Everyone on the field has been asked to return to the locker room because of lightning in the area. 

No word yet on whether kickoff will be affected. The game is scheduled to kick off at 7:49 p.m. ET.

LSU has the more talented roster, but with so many new moving parts and a Clemson team also adjusting to a new offense with a new coordinator, starting quarterback and several offensive linemen, don't expect a high-scoring game. Both defenses should slow it down enough to keep this game in the 20s. Pick: Under 50

Leave it to Lane Kiffin to show up for his first game at LSU with an entourage. The first-year LSU coach was flanked by comedian and podcaster Theo Vonn, former LSU gymnast Livvy Dunne and actress Brooks Nader.

All five starters from last season are gone along the offensive front. But is that really bad news? The OL, despite being a veteran group, ranked 82nd in pressure rate allowed last year. This new group includes a pair that started in the bowl game, but the fresh-car smell still lingers.

LSU has a lot of talent on its roster, but many of these pieces are new. Kiffin brought in an incredible haul in the portal, led by Arizona State quarterback Sam Leavitt, but will everything gel immediately under the bright lights in Death Valley? It's a legitimate question.

It took a while to announce, but Christopher Vizzina will start at quarterback for Clemson. The three-year backup takes over an offense that needs a spark under Morris, who also takes over an offense that struggled to protect the quarterback and failed to produce an elite receiver. Bryant Wesco Jr. and T.J. Moore will need to step up to get this offense back on track. 

LSU laid down its sword. 

For now.

LSU did not include Dae'Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris, two former Ole Miss players who signed NFL contracts this offseason, on the roster it submitted to the College Sports Commission on Friday. Neither will play in the Tigers' season opener Saturday against Clemson, despite Wright telling reporters on Thursday he expected to. That move comes one day after a Baton Rouge, Louisiana, judge granted a preliminary injunction that allowed for LSU to roster the players. 

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