Lane Kiffin didn’t bring Billy Glasscock to Baton Rouge to build a team that might win the SEC three years from now. LSU hired Kiffin to compete immediately, and the general manager who followed him from Ole Miss knows exactly how quickly patience runs out at a program with national championship expectations.
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On the October 22 episode of The Lane Kiffin Show, Glasscock explained why college football’s current system has changed the way he evaluates recruits, allocates money, and plans for future seasons.
“It’s a combination of two things,” Glasscock said about his roster-building approach. “The one thing that the portal and the playoffs did do in college football is that it really gives you no grace as coaching staff and as a general manager.
“Which means nobody at this table wants to hear us say, ‘Hey, man, we’re young. We’re going to be good in three years. So, you have to make decisions that allow you to be as good as you possibly can be every single fall.”
The Tigers spent the offseason chasing some of the biggest names in the transfer portal. They landed QB Sam Leavitt from Arizona State, offensive tackle Jordan Seaton from Colorado, and edge rusher Princewill Umanmielen from Ole Miss.
LSU also signed a top-10 high school class, giving Kiffin a mix of established college players and prospects who still need time to develop. Keeping that balance will only become harder.
With roster valuations increasing exponentially every year, it’s hard for programs to keep paying more and more. This year, for instance, LSU reportedly spent north of $40 million on its roster.
So, if they want to keep everyone next year, Lane Kiffin will have to at least pay $10 million more, which is based on previous NIL market trends. At some point, that becomes unsustainable, so balance is the key.
Glasscock has already experienced both sides of that business. At Ole Miss, he helped Kiffin assemble highly ranked transfer classes in 2024 and 2025. The Rebels went 13-2 last season and reached the College Football Playoff semifinals, the best season in school history.
“I don’t think you’re ever going to have one extremely more than the other. I think if you’re doing it the right way,” Glasscock said about signing portal and high school talent on his roster.
The transfer portal will open again for football players from January 4 to 13, 2027. The NCAA used a single 15-day window in January 2026 instead of the old winter and spring periods.
That leaves Glasscock with less time to work out who stays and who goes. Other schools will be calling LSU players, and he has to give those players reasons not to leave. The calendar is shorter, but the roster battle hasn’t gone anywhere.
“Every player on your team is technically a free agent every year,” he said. “You have to re-sign your entire team. Doesn’t exist in any other sport but ours. And so you have to look at it that way.”
Kiffin’s first LSU season has already shown how little room there is for error
LSU is 5-2 and ranked No. 18 heading into Saturday’s road game against Auburn. The Tigers have scored 40.4 points per game and allowed 15.9, numbers that suggest Kiffin has assembled a competitive team.
But the two defeats explain Glasscock’s urgency. LSU lost 32-24 at Ole Miss on September 19, an uncomfortable return to Oxford for Kiffin and several members of his staff.
Three weeks later, Kentucky beat the Tigers 35-34 in overtime. LSU answered with a 31-0 shutout of No. 16 Mississippi State on October 17, but its SEC record remains 2-2.
LSU’s November slate leaves little room for another defeat. Alabama, Texas, Tennessee, and Arkansas are all still to come after the Auburn game, and the Tigers have already dropped two conference games. Another loss could leave them with too much ground to make up late in the season.
Glasscock will have plenty to weigh when the staff reviews the roster. That decision-making process is already taking shape. With two SEC defeats behind them and a demanding schedule still ahead, Kiffin and his staff have little time to put off the questions Glasscock raised.