Let me start by saying I am not a sports columnist by any stretch of the imagination. Obviously, that is not what I do, and as so many of you know, that is not my role at this newspaper. Some may question why I am even using my editorial space to talk about sports. However, I am a huge sports fan and a lifelong LSU fan, as I have expressed in my newspaper columns many times through the years. And as I have also expressed before, I grew up with my dad rooting for everything LSU. In this case — as in many others relating to me and my dad — the apple has not fallen far from the tree.
That said, like me, I know without a doubt most of you are extremely disappointed with our 2025 LSU football season. All the buildup, all the offseason hype — in so many ways, this football season did not live up to expectations. A midseason coaching change. An offense that could not quite put it all together, even though the talent was there for the most part, with the exception of an inexperienced offensive line. Inexperience at certain position groups is going to happen from time to time on both sides of the ball — that’s just the way it is. Even with the disappointment on offense, our LSU defense was exceptional in many ways.
LSU football is never judged in half measures. This program’s ceiling is not “good.” It’s championships. Are we spoiled? Do we expect too much? Maybe. But that’s what we expect. Three national championships in football since 2003 — and a national championship appearance in 2011. The bar is set high. Are we arrogant? Do we see ourselves as a “blue blood” football program? Quite honestly, in my opinion, yes.
Every fall — and many of us well before fall — LSU football fans scan the schedule expecting the kind of bruising Saturdays that remind the rest of the SEC that Baton Rouge is still sacred ground. The 2025 season did not deliver the championship narrative many hoped for, but it did reveal something deeper about where the program stands and where it is heading. We are LSU. We are respectful and prideful.
Even though we were disappointed in the overall results of this football season, there were glimmers of the LSU swagger. The Tigers did not lack playmakers — they lacked consistency. Too often, promising starts gave way to stalled offensive drives and untimely mistakes. The fan base — passionate, knowledgeable, loyal — saw a team that could beat anybody on a given Saturday, yet struggled to score and finish games.
The season’s defining stretch came not in the highlight reels, but in the quiet moments after several losses that should never have been losses. It is easy to win when momentum is rolling and Tiger Stadium is roaring. It is harder to lock in when adversity arrives. That is where LSU stumbled. Not because the talent wasn’t there — it was. But great talent without identity is a recipe for disappointment in the SEC. In my opinion, this LSU team seemed to lack the drive, the “oomph,” and the physicality to pull out or pull away in several close contests.
The bright spots were undeniable. The emergence of young contributors pointed to a stronger future roster than outsiders might expect. Leadership, too, grew in real time — a locker room that did not fracture, even when skeptics were ready to pounce. That speaks to a foundation most programs envy.
Still, Tiger fans know the standard. LSU is a program built on games where the opponent leaves bruised in both body and spirit. A season filled with missed opportunities is not a failure — it is a warning. The SEC is not forgiving. If you don’t set the tone, the league will set it for you. And with the new conference alignment and a grueling conference schedule, the SEC is now tougher than ever before. Just look at the number of SEC teams ranked in the Top 25 — many near or at the top — during the 2025 college football season.
If LSU expects to return to championship contention, the program must rediscover what makes Tiger football intimidating: physicality, discipline, an offense that can move the ball with explosive plays — and score in the red zone — and a defense that makes quarterbacks second-guess every play and every throw. There is no shortcut back to that identity. It is built piece by piece, season by season. And as bad as this season may have seemed, perhaps this year was one of those bricks.
The 2025 Tigers may not have given fans the season they wanted. But if the lessons hold — if the locker room’s growth translates into sharper execution — then this year could be remembered not as a setback, but as the season LSU relearned how to become LSU again. And exciting times are ahead, as we begin a new chapter with offensive-minded “quarterback development guru” Lane Kiffin taking over as our next head football coach.
Randy Brown is Regional Publisher and Executive VP of Specht Newspapers, Inc.