Joel Klatt on LSU vs. Clemson in Week 1: 'Brian Kelly needs this game'

Joel Klatt recognizes the importance of LSU vs. Clemson in Week 1. That’s why he had it as part of his ten games that’ll shape the 2025 college football season during the latest episode of The Joel Klatt Show.

While both teams can feasibly survive a loss, Klatt believes it’s paramount for LSU and Brian Kelly to get a win. With his track record in season-opening contests since heading to Baton Rouge, that’s easier said than done, but the FOX Sports analyst made sure to point out that if any team can buck the trend, it’s this season’s iteration of LSU.

“I love this matchup,” Klatt stated. “Easily going to be a Top 10 matchup in Week 1. Brian Kelly needs this game. He needs this game. We all expect LSU to be a really good football team. They’ve gone all-in out of the portal. They’ve got their quarterback back. That experience at that position, as we’ve seen in the last couple of years with JJ McCarthy and Will Howard, winning championships — you need experience at that position. Now, Brian Kelly has it, although he’s 0-3 in season openers.

“LSU, they need this. Like, let’s be honest — I think LSU fans need this. They need to see this program progressing. In a lot of ways, it’s not all that dissimilar from Steve Sarkisian’s first couple of years at Texas, where it was like, ‘Is this working?’ And then you got the breakthrough. So, we need to start seeing the breakthrough for Brian Kelly at LSU.

“I think that that’s totally fair. I do think that we’re going to see that this year. I’m a big believer in what LSU can do this year. I think this is a Playoff team.”

As Klatt alluded to, Garrett Nussmeier returning for LSU is huge at quarterback, and it’s allowed Kelly and company to build an awesome team around him. The standard in Baton Rouge is national championships, and that’s what Kelly came to Louisiana for. If he doesn’t at least get to the College Football Playoff in 2025, the whispers will begin to get louder and louder.

On the other hand, Clemson is in a similar position entering this season. They’re retuning Cade Klubnik at quarterback, and they’re much improved on both sides of the football. It’s going to be a heavyweight battle on Aug. 30.

Whoever gets the win will be well-positioned moving forward, while a loss could set back either LSU or Clemson, whether that’s fair or not. Time will tell if Brian Kelly can get it done this time around. Joel Klatt and the rest of the college football world will be watching close.