Sam Leavitt has committed to Lane Kiffin’s LSU Tigers. The former Ole Miss Rebels head coach has finally secured his QB1 for the start of his tenure in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Leavitt joins after considering offers from LSU, Kentucky, Texas Tech, Tennessee and Miami. He visited the majority of the schools, and ultimately made his decision after Kiffin convinced him about the project for the 2026 season.
CFB analyst J. D. Pickell has issued a warning regarding the former Arizona State Sun Devils QB.
“This is the thing. Everybody wins with Sam Leavitt going to LSU. Both Leavitt and Kiffin, I think, are in a great spot here because if you are Lane Kiffin, you need to land someone who is going to run your system your first year out there in Baton Rouge.
“If they go 8-4 next year at LSU, there’ll be riots. You have to at least feel like if you are Lane Kiffin landing Sam Leavitt, your expectations should at least be College Football Playoffs.” Pickell said.
The LSU Tigers are one of the bigger sporting programs in the NCAA. The football team has been waiting for a national championship since the magical Joe Burrow-led group in 2019.
The Tigers parted ways with a massive capital outlay to snag Lane Kiffin after the offensive-minded head coach spent the last six seasons with the Ole Miss Rebels. Kiffin replaces Brian Kelly, the program’s former HC, who was fired after a 5-3 start to the 2024 season.
Lane Kiffin has already brought in numerous offensive assistants from his time at Ole Miss. He now has a Star QB to properly embark on his regime.
Sam Leavitt entered the transfer portal in December 2025. It was the second time that the pocket passing QB would be entering the portal.
Leavitt was instrumental in Arizona State’s foray into the playoffs in the 2024 college football season. The Sun Devils went 11-2 in the regular season, but were ultimately knocked out by the Texas Longhorns.
Leavitt was viewed as a potential Heisman Trophy winner entering the 2025 college football season. However, he featured in just seven games before suffering a season-ending foot injury. He sustained the injury in a September game against the Baylor Bears.
Leavitt will now spend potentially his last season in the NCAA throwing passes for Kiffin’s LSU Tigers. He’ll look to learn a lot from the experienced head coach and potentially improve his stock entering the stacked 2027 draft.
