Lane Kiffin’s first real entrance in Tiger Stadium as LSU head coach came with plenty of fanfare.
Ahead of LSU’s season opener against Clemson, Kiffin was surrounded by a rabid Tigers fan base as he entered the stadium. Kiffin had plenty of celebrity support behind him too, with influencer and former LSU gymnast Olivia “Livvy” Dunne, model Brooks Nader and comedian Theo Von all there for Kiffin’s first game.
Nader is a Baton Rouge native whose grandfather, Sam Nader, is the assistant athletic director for LSU’s football operations. She appeared earlier in the day on ESPN’s “College GameDay,” which was on site for the hyped game.
LSU debut on Sept. 5, 2026. ESPN
Von, a Louisiana native, attended LSU and had a column for the school newspaper, The Reveille.
Dunne, whose boyfriend is the 2025 National League Cy Young Award winner and former LSU star Paul Skenes, was a member of the Tigers’ national championship gymnastics squad in 2024. Dunne and Kiffin will both appear on the upcoming reboot of “Baywatch.”
The LSU-Clemson matchup already had plenty of hype, with two of the biggest names in Division I college football going at it.
But the game added an intriguing layer, particularly over the last few days, when Dae’Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris — two players who spent time with NFL squads this summer — scored a win in a legal case in their battle to get a fifth year of college eligibility.
In this fight, LSU and Kiffin are being sued by the SEC, which maintains the Tigers are violating league rules by bringing in players who were rostered on pro teams.
joining the program at the end of last season. ESPN
Wright and Harris were ultimately not rostered ahead of Friday night’s deadline, meaning they will not play Saturday. However, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported the two could be added to the roster later this year.
Kiffin opened up on “GameDay” about his decision to keep the two off the team for now.
“That wasn’t easy,” Kiffin said of the decision during his appearance. “As much as I feel for the players, and I believe that you fight for what you believe in and I believe these kids have an opportunity to play — just like all the other kids around the country that are winning court cases and being put on rosters.
“But at the same time, I’m the head coach of LSU, and I had to make a decision that is for the big picture of LSU and the LSU football program with the uncertainties of what potentially could’ve come by adding them to the roster. And we didn’t get exact reasons or exact what that would mean if we added them.”
