LSU-Clemson delayed due to lightning. Here’s the latest.

Excited for the Lane Kiffin era to officially begin at LSU?

You’ll have to wait just a little while longer.

LSU announced that its season opener against Clemson won’t kick off until 8:40 p.m., so long as another lightning strike isn’t detected in the game’s 90-minute window for warm-ups. That began at 7:10 p.m.

The Tigers were minutes away from taking the field for the first time in 2026 at around 5 p.m. Saturday evening. Then menacing clouds formed overhead, rain started falling, and lightning struck nearby, forcing Tiger Stadium officials to reset the Countdown to Kickoff clock on the scoreboard back to 90 minutes.

Tiger Stadium emptied out, but the students largely stayed put, waving towels in the air and singing along to the rain-themed songs that LSU was playing over the loudspeakers.

At 7 p.m., players and staff from both teams began trickling back onto the field for warm-ups. The sky was clear, but a light rain was still falling.

LSU said that 8:40 p.m. is believed to be the latest kickoff time in program history.

Kickoff was originally set for 6:49 p.m. on ABC.

LSU is beginning its first year under Kiffin. Clemson is starting its 19th season under coach Dabo Swinney, who’s now hoping to lead his program to a better record than the 7-6 mark it finished with last season.

This story will be updated.

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