Lane Kiffin says SEC doesn't want LSU to beat Alabama

The SEC set the time on Monday: November 7, 2:30 p.m. CT, on ABC. By Wednesday, Kiffin admitted he never saw it coming.

Nick Kelly

@_NickKelly

Lane Kiffin on afternoon game against Alabama: "I never even thought, considered it wouldn't be at night. I guess that's probably naive of me."

He has a point about how unusual it is. This is a game LSU fans think of as a Saturday night game in Death Valley. The 2:30 start makes it the first daytime LSU-Alabama kickoff in Tiger Stadium since 2010, when the Tigers beat the Tide 24-21. In Baton Rouge, playing this one in daylight means losing the noise, the dark and the home edge that comes with them.

Kiffin didn't stop at being surprised. Asked about the time slot, he went right at the league office, and it's hard to read it as anything other than a coach who thinks he's been on the wrong end of the SEC all year.

Jon Blau

@Jon_Blau

Lane Kiffin was "shocked" when he learned LSU-Alabama wouldn't be played at night. But his surprise quickly faded. "If someone thinks the SEC wants us to win this year after what's been going on, they must have just been on Mars the last four months." t.co/TpPLW5frQU

"The last 4 months" is pointed. Kiffin didn't spell out which grievances he meant, and he didn't need to. The quote is about the league in general, not one ruling or one kickoff. Coming from a guy who has always enjoyed poking the SEC, it reads like he has been waiting for the right moment to say it out loud.

The trash talk at the conference didn't spill over onto the opponent. Kiffin gave Alabama a lot of credit and called the Tide the most talented team LSU has seen this season.

Charlie Potter

@Charlie_Potter

LSU head coach Lane Kiffin gives his early impressions of Alabama "Getting ready for the most talented team we've played, as you really look at it. When you combine offense and defense, these guys really are loaded. Look like the old Alabama teams." 🔗 t.co/Mt7HBwDWyn

"Look like the old Alabama teams" is about as big a compliment as anyone in Baton Rouge can give the Tide. Both teams come in at 6-2. LSU is 3-2 in the SEC and Alabama is 4-2, so for both of them this is close to a must-win if they want to stay in the conference race in November.

So Kiffin has his underdog story ready: the most loaded roster on the schedule, a kickoff that takes away the night crowd, and a league he says isn't on LSU's side. If the Tigers win in the afternoon on November 7, he'll get to say it again. If they lose, people will remember that he set this up before the game was played.