Night kickoff set for Clemson football season opener vs. LSU, Lane Kiffin
Get ready for another Clemson football season opener in prime time.
Clemson’s 2026 season-opening game at LSU will be a 7:30 p.m. kickoff on ABC, ESPN announced Tuesday.
The game is set for Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026 at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Clemson-LSU will also be the Week 1 site of ESPN’s signature “College GameDay” pregame program that morning, the network announced.
Last year’s Clemson-LSU game received the same premier broadcast slot (7:30 p.m. on ABC) and was the first ever regular-season meeting between the ACC and SEC programs. LSU won 17-10 in what was then a Top 10 matchup.
This year’s Clemson-LSU game doesn’t have the same stakes, but there are still plenty of storylines that make it arguably college football’s top Week 1 contest.
The Clemson game will serve as Lane Kiffin’s LSU coaching debut after the former Ole Miss coach controversially left his team when the 2025 regular season ended but before the College Football Playoff started. Kiffin replaced Brian Kelly, who was fired in November in the middle of his fourth season.
Clemson, meanwhile, is coming off its worst season under coach Dabo Swinney since 2010 (7-6). The Tigers are a healthy betting underdog (11.5 points as of Tuesday) and will be breaking in a new starting quarterback (likely Christopher Vizzina).
LSU ranked No. 11 in ESPN’s post-spring “Way Too Early Top 25” for college football. Clemson wasn’t ranked, which is a common trend for the Tigers this offseason and reflective of their reduced national expectations entering 2026.
LSU leads the all-time series with Clemson 4-1 and has won the last two meetings.
ESPN released various college football kickoff times Tuesday as part of Disney’s annual “upfront” advertising presentation previewing its 2026 content.
Clemson football 2026 schedule
Listed with known channels and kick times; ESPN Way Too Early Top 25 rankings
- Sept. 5: at No. 11 LSU
- Sept. 12: vs. Georgia Southern
- Sept. 19: vs. UNC
- Sept. 25: at Cal (Friday game)
- Oct. 3: vs. No. 7 Miami
- Oct. 10: OPEN
- Oct. 17: vs. Charleston Southern
- Oct. 24: vs. Virginia Tech
- Oct. 31: at Florida State
- Nov. 6/7: at Syracuse (possible Friday game)
- Nov. 14: vs. Georgia Tech
- Nov. 21: at Duke
- Nov. 28: vs. South Carolina
