Lane Kiffin spent the build-up to his first game at LSU defending an attempt to add two former professional players. By half-time against Clemson, he could afford to make a joke about not having them.

“Imagine if we had pro players,” Kiffin said during a brief television interview as he left the field after watching LSU establish a 31–3 lead by the interval. The line completed an emphatic response to a week dominated by court proceedings, conference opposition and questions concerning Dae’Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris. Neither appeared on LSU’s opening roster despite securing protection from the Southeastern Conference’s prohibition upon former professionals returning to college football, but their absence proved irrelevant on Saturday as the 11th-ranked Tigers dismantled Clemson 51–10 at Tiger Stadium.

LSU accumulated 644 yards and a school-record 38 first downs while restricting Clemson to 145 and eight. The Tigers rushed for 309 yards, recorded 11 tackles for loss and scored 31 unanswered points during the first half. The resulting 41-point margin represented the heaviest defeat of Dabo Swinney’s 19 seasons as Clemson head coach, as LSU replaced questions about the legality of its proposed roster with more immediate evidence about the strength of the team already available to Kiffin.

Transfer quarterback Sam Leavitt passed for 230 yards and a touchdown before leaving during the third quarter. He added 113 yards and two scores on the ground, while Dilin Jones also rushed for 113 yards and two touchdowns. Winston Watkins Jr caught seven passes for 110 yards and Jordan Ross returned an interception 30 yards for a touchdown as LSU produced points through its passing game, running attack and defense. The performance came after kickoff had been delayed for almost two hours by lightning. Much of Tiger Stadium was cleared during the storm, although LSU’s student section remained in place, before Kiffin’s long-awaited debut was finally able to begin.

Clemson briefly moved ahead through an opening field goal, but its advantage did not survive the first quarter. LSU responded by scoring the final 31 points of the half and entered the interval having outgained the visitors 336–54. The Tigers had produced 21 first downs to Clemson’s one and rushed for 213 yards before Kiffin delivered his pointed observation about the players he had left off the roster.

QB Christopher Vizzina completed his second career start with 83 passing yards and an interception, while Clemson managed only 40 yards on the ground and were unable to sustain possessions against an LSU defense that repeatedly disrupted the backfield. Ross’ interception return extended the lead during a sequence that turned the game into a rout. Clemson eventually reached the end zone, but LSU scored the final 20 points to complete a result far more decisive than the controversy which preceded it. Kiffin’s reconstructed roster clearly possesses considerably greater depth and cohesion than the week’s distractions suggested, as Leavitt offered the dual-threat production that made him one of the most important additions of the offseason, Jones gave the running game another 100-yard performer and Watkins supplied an immediate receiving outlet.

Clemson’s collapse also demands examination, as Swinney’s team was overwhelmed at the line of scrimmage and offered little protection or offensive support to Vizzina. More demanding SEC opposition should provide a clearer measure of Kiffin’s team.