HC Lane Kiffin used his LSU football team introductory presser to stress that his move to Baton Rouge was not just about money. He revealed, via Nicole Auerbach, that both Ole Miss and Florida put forward offers comparable to what LSU ultimately gave him, framing his decision as a bet on the Tigers’ ceiling as a national title platform rather than a simple pay upgrade. Still, as Kiffin settles into his new job, one of his first headaches is already here: early damage to LSU’s 2026 recruiting class.
Four-star wide receiver Kenny Darby has decommitted from the LSU football team, as he told Hayes Fawcett of Rivals. The 6-foot-1, 180-pound Bossier City, Louisiana native had been pledged to the Tigers since November 2024, making him one of the long-standing pillars of LSU’s future receiver group. Losing a homegrown blue-chip wideout who stayed in the boat for over a year is exactly the kind of recruiting blow Kiffin was hired to prevent, not absorb.
Darby’s decision comes at a moment when Kiffin’s profile in the sport is being pulled in two directions. On one hand, LSU just made him one of the highest-paid coaches in the country and sold him as the guy to drag the program back into the championship conversation. On the other hand, national voices are already pushing back against the idea that he belongs on the sport’s top tier.
On Wake Up Barstool, FOX analyst Joel Klatt argued that even with the buzz and the contract, Kiffin is “not even close” to a top-three coach in college football, pointing instead to names like Dan Lanning, Marcus Freeman, and Steve Sarkisian as having stronger cases. Klatt also reminded listeners of Kiffin’s long history of messy exits and warned that any school hiring him has to accept both the offensive upside and the drama that tends to follow.
For LSU, Darby’s decommitment is more warning light than alarm bell, but it underscores how thin the margin is. Kiffin was brought to Baton Rouge to win battles exactly like this with in-state skill talent. If more prospects follow Darby’s lead, the honeymoon in purple and gold will feel a lot shorter.
