LSU football’s morale may be low after the loss to Ole Miss before the bye, but luckily, thanks to the team’s recent South Carolina win and the struggles of other SEC rivals, it still has a very reasonable chance to make the college football playoffs.
To make the playoffs as an SEC team, you either have to win the conference or place in the top seven non-conference winning teams.
The only clear leaders of the SEC right now are undefeated Ole Miss and Texas A&M. LSU is now stuck in a cluster of strong one-loss teams such as Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma, Missouri and Vanderbilt
How does LSU’s upcoming schedule set it up for a playoff push, and what has to play out to keep its hopes alive?
First, LSU needs to win all games it’s favored in, along with an upset against a strong team like Oklahoma or Texas A&M. This would give great momentum to the Tigers late in the season and heavily influence playoff voters.
The Tigers cannot drop any more games because the SEC standings are so close. If LSU is upset at any point throughout the rest of the season, there’s likely going to be another team that gets a win and overtakes the Tigers in the rankings.
LSU has done well not letting games slip away, even if it has struggled to get those wins. South Carolina was an important game to walk out of unscathed, and the Tigers did exactly that. Now, LSU will move on to its toughest stretch of games while still ranked in the top 10, a premium position to jump into the top tier of playoff rankings.
Over the next three weeks, LSU needs to show it’s worth the top 10 ranking. LSU plays Vanderbilt, Texas A&M and Alabama, all of which are games that would boost LSU’s playoff resume tremendously with a win.
LSU needs to get a statement win over the currently 5-1 Alabama team. The two teams will be neck-and-neck in the rankings as the season goes on, with both fighting back from one loss. Both need all they can get to stay in the playoff race. Although Alabama has clearly looked like the better team, LSU-Alabama games can always get interesting due to the intense rivalry between the schools.
Both are currently 5-1 and looking to finish their seasons with few losses to stay alive in playoff hopes. It’s very likely that the winner of this game will get one of the non-conference-winner spots. Still, there’s a lot of football to be played, so it wouldn’t be surprising if the SEC leaders end up dropping a game or two.
Oklahoma was undefeated but lost to Texas this past weekend. Even with the loss, the Sooners are still considered a top SEC team due to the loss occurring while the team was banged up and without top quarterback prospect John Mateer.
Oklahoma is seen as a team that’s likely to drop more games before the season ends due to a grueling schedule for the rest of the year. The team’s last five games are all against top-15 ranked SEC teams, and it will face LSU in its final game of the regular season.
If LSU pulls off the win on the road and Oklahoma manages to keep a high ranking ahead of this game, LSU could see itself boosted to a top spot in the SEC, also dependent on the records of other top-ranked SEC programs.
Texas A&M is another huge matchup for the Tigers. The Aggies are currently undefeated, but will have to travel to Baton Rouge to meet LSU.
LSU has a better chance of winning this game than many say. Texas A&M has only beaten unranked teams so far this year and will have its first real ranked test versus LSU. The Tigers have the opportunity to swap places with the Aggies if they win this matchup.
Usually, there are clear playoff contenders midway through the season. It’s relatively easy to tell who is in and out of the race, but not this year in the SEC.
ESPN still ranks 10 SEC schools as having higher than a 20% chance to make the playoffs. Last season, only three SEC teams made the playoffs, but due to the competition in 2025, there’s likely to be three or four teams besides the conference champion in the playoffs.
Although LSU has its struggles, it’s not the time for fans to lose all hope. The Tigers are just a few big wins away from returning to the top of the SEC.
This playoff push will be a race among many teams, with harsh debate and controversy growing closer to the postseason over who deserves a spot in the playoffs. LSU just needs to keep up with the pack and close out the second half of the year stronger than it started.
