BATON ROUGE, LA – Arch Manning pointed to the Texas sideline in triumph. He’d made so many mistakes on this night, but he couldn’t have been thinking of any of them in this moment.
Not after he’d flicked a game-winning touchdown to Raleek Brown.
As Manning celebrated, Lane Kiffin stood with his hands on his hips and stared toward the opposite end of the field.
It’s official. Kiffin’s first season is a massive flop, because his team’s one reliable trait was its inability to finish games.
LSU is out of the playoff race, with two games to go.
So much hype, so much money spent, such little to show for it.
LSU led for most of the game, but when the clock hit triple zeros, the score said this:
Texas 22, LSU 21.
Kiffin’s first season on the bayou will end
in an irrelevant bowl game.
He’ll finish with fewer wins than Brian Kelly secured in his first LSU season.
Texas won despite Manning’s three interceptions, despite LSU putting the Texas quarterback in a blender for most of the night.
Why?
Because, LSU can’t handle the pressures of the fourth quarter..
Not against Mississippi. Not against Kentucky. Not against Alabama. And, not against Texas despite leading all but the final three seconds of the second half.
Kiffin badly wanted to talk a scary LSU super villain into existence, but the Tigers never looked intimidating enough to earn that label.
LSU and Kiffin are Charlie Brown. Lucy took the football away. Again.
Texas outlasts LSU
Two of the nation’s most expensive rosters conducted a contest to see how many turnovers they could rack up between them.
The Tigers head into the final two weeks of the season without a single signature victory on the resume of Kiffin’s first season, and we can stop pretending like LSU is a playoff team.
What’s the Guv got to say about this one?
Not much. He's on to tweeting about Will Wade’s basketball team.
As poorly as Manning played for much of the game, LSU struggled to fully capitalize because Sam Leavitt matched Manning with three interceptions of his own, and LSU wasted a few red-zone opportunities.
Actually, LSU wasted a season.
A $13 million coach, a $50 million roster, and not one win of substance to show for it.
Kiffin is no big-game coach, and LSU is no fierce villain. It's just a meek antihero that can’t stand up to any pressure.
Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network's senior national college football columnist. Listen to his podcast, "College Football Unfiltered." Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Forget what Lane Kiffin says, because LSU is no villain. It's a bust
