LSU coach Lane Kiffin either heard all of the chatter about No. 16 Mississippi State’s chances Saturday without Kamario Taylor, or he could imagine what was about to be said following the Tigers’ 31-0 win over a team missing its star quarterback.
“I know you’re going to talk about injuries, and that’ll be a storyline,” Kiffin told reporters postgame. “But hey, there ain’t any team in America that has more significant players standing on the sideline than us.
“So not a lot of pity there.”
The No. 22 Tigers (5-2, 2-2 SEC) desperately needed a win Saturday to keep their College Football Playoff chances alive. And Kiffin seemed intent on shaping the narrative following a victory that could be downplayed in the coming weeks.
Mississippi State didn’t play Taylor because of a turf toe injury, nor did the Bulldogs have leading rusher Fluff Bothwell.
Kiffin wanted everyone to remember LSU is still without its stars in No. 7 jerseys, linebacker Whit Weeks and tight end Trey’Dez Green, along with safety Dashawn Spears.
During the last week of practice, quarterback Sam Leavitt aggravated his hamstring injury as well, which kept him in the pocket versus Mississippi State. Then, edge rusher Princewill Umanmielen was knocked out by injury during the game.
By the time Kiffin reached the podium postgame, he’d had his fill.
He was not only thinking about injuries but also a pair of seniors made eligible by a court order who inevitably weren’t rostered by LSU because the Southeastern Conference wouldn’t allow athletes who previously signed with NFL teams to return to college.
“I don’t have a lot of empathy for injuries and breaks,” Kiffin said. “I mean, this (LSU) team, from Day 1, has gotten more bad breaks this season — you can go to fricking injunctions not being followed, and list the bad breaks throughout this year.”
Kiffin could have used tight end Dae’Quan Wright, who started for him at Ole Miss before signing with the Eagles as an undrafted free agent. Wright was traded to the Browns and suited up for one preseason game before he was cut and joined LSU for practices.
The Tigers were also looking to add ex-Ole Miss defensive tackle Zxavian Harris, who signed with the Saints but never practiced with the franchise because of a foot injury.
Even though they had a court order from Baton Rouge judge William Jorden saying they could return to college, the SEC pushed back. The conference instituted a fine equal to 50% of a sport’s budget and a half-season suspension of its coach if an ex-pro was added.
When the athletes’ attorneys attempted to neutralize those penalties by making the SEC a defendant in their eligibility lawsuit against the NCAA, the conference retaliated by suing LSU officials, including Kiffin, and threatening to expel LSU from the league.
Kiffin ultimately decided not to roster Wright and Harris.
He has found himself coming back to the controversy, though. Kiffin quipped “Imagine if we had pro players” as he departed for halftime during a 51-10 rout of Clemson in the opener. He heard discussion of Mississippi State’s plight without Taylor, and he was triggered again.
“We had a lot of people sitting on our sideline and won 31-0,” Kiffin said, veering back to the Tigers’ injuries. “This team was built to be a championship team with significant players and starters that I still say can match up with anybody if we were healthy.
“And when those injuries happen, it’s hard.”
Kiffin also came back to LSU’s 35-34 overtime loss to Kentucky, thinking about a missed tackle on the Wildcats’ 55-yard punt return touchdown last weekend.
Not only are the Tigers missing stars such as Weeks and Green, but redshirt freshman wideout Phillip Wright was LSU’s gunner on the punt team.
“That’s Philly making that play,” Kiffin said. “We’ve had as bad of breaks as anybody.”
As a reporter started to ask another question, Kiffin interrupted. He was then reminded of a false start penalty that wasn’t called before Kentucky’s game-winning, two-point conversion play. Instead, a timeout was granted.
“I mean, you can keep going down the list. I said I wasn’t going to, but you got a false start and the two-point play doesn’t even happen and just doesn’t count,” Kiffin said. “And you get an apology for it (from SEC officials). Thanks.”
Pity the Bulldogs?
Kiffin says thanks but no thanks.
“We got a break today,” Kiffin said of Taylor and Bothwell’s absences. “I don’t think we’ve gotten many breaks since the beginning of the season in a lot of areas.”
#LSU #football #Lane #Kiffin #doesnt #pity #Mississippi #State #LSU
Source link
