Lane Kiffin Monday Press Conference (Miss State Week)...Link and Tidbits Inside

LSU (4-2, 1-2 in SEC) returns to Tiger Stadium on Saturday to face Mississippi State (4-1, 2-1 in SEC) in an SEC showdown. Kickoff is set for 11am CT on ESPN.

The Tigers enter the matchup as a 12.5-point favorite, with the over/under sitting at 58.5 points.

LSU will look to bounce back from a 35-34 overtime loss at Kentucky, where the Wildcats converted a two-point attempt in overtime to secure the upset. Mississippi State comes in rested after an open date last weekend.

This will be the 118th meeting between the two schools. LSU leads the all-time series 78-36-3 and has won seven of the last 10 meetings, including a 41-14 victory in Starkville in 2023. The Tigers have also won the last three meetings between the two schools. Series History

Press Conference Tidbits:
- Kiffin said he painted the Tiger Stadium opponent's locker room pink...he said he did some research on what certain colors do to a mind before a competitive match. He did it at Ole Miss too.

- Lane doesn't think the bye week helps as much as people think (Miss State is coming off a bye). Helps with players healing up but hurts by getting team out of sync. Stats have shown that it doesn't necessary translate to more wins.

- Lane thinks team is missing the on the field leadership of players like Trey'dez Green, Whit Weeks and Dashawn Spears.

- On 4th and goal before half: Lane said he can't discuss what the SEC review of the play revealed. He thinks the refs missed a lot of calls against LSU, but acknowledges that bad refereeing balances out over time. He said refs have a touch job.

- On preparing for an 11am game: doesn't see it being an issue getting the team ready for the early start.

- On Miss State Head Coach Jeff Lebby: Lane says he is a great coach...he wanted to hire him as a position coach under OC Kendall Briles when Lane was at FAU was wasn't allowed to. Says he doesn't like playing against him because they play fast and pick you apart.