Brian Kelly isn’t tiptoeing around the hot stove of college football realignment and scheduling chaos. In fact, he’s diving right in with a bold proposal—bring on the Big Ten. Amid a sea of SEC uncertainty, Kelly made waves by voicing his support for SEC teams playing Big Ten opponents in the regular season, citing recent dominance from Michigan and Ohio State. The last two national champions came from the Big Ten. It’s a stance that, on the surface, feels like a challenge to the old guard of SEC supremacy—but dig a little deeper, and you’ll find the SEC quietly propping up LSU’s throne.

The LSU Tigers are being served exactly what they love: night games. And not just one or two—this fall’s early slate is dripping in prime-time shine. Mike and Shane from That SEC Football pulled back the curtain on LSU’s favored treatment. “The Clemson game has already been announced. That’s going to be the big night game,” said Mike. “At Clemson, 7:30 Eastern, 6:30 Central at Clemson. Week one. That’s going to be one hell of a showdown. And then week 2, Louisiana Tech, another night game for them Tigers. 6:30 Central, 7:30 Eastern, ESPN, SEC Network Plus, and then the Florida game we already talked about. 7:30 Eastern, 6:30 Central on ABC.”

If you’re LSU, you eat this up with a side of gumbo. “So LSU better get used to playing at night. That’s what they love to play down there. And the SEC gives it to them, I think, more than any other team in this conference,” Mike added. And it’s not just convenience—it’s about reviving a mythos.

Shane put it bluntly: “Well, I think it’s time to bring back Death Valley… we always get these Homefield Advantage episodes out there. You know what I’m saying? You see these lists, and everybody was so quick to put Nighttime at Death Valley on top of that list. But here lately, it’s kind of took a hit or two. I think now’s a perfect, this is a perfect season to kind of plant that flag and remind everybody where the toughest place to play football in, and that’s around a lot of dru-k LSU fans at night Death Valley.”

It’s a realignment of perception and branding that goes beyond mere kickoff times. Night games in Baton Rouge aren’t just football games; they’re rituals. It’s SEC pageantry meets bourbon-soaked bedlam. And the SEC seems more than happy to lean into that spectacle, perhaps even to tip the scales. While many programs are still jockeying for prime slots, LSU keeps getting handed the moonlight.

Still, the broader SEC scheduling landscape is in flux. Whether the conference moves to an 8- or 9-game league schedule post-2025 remains an open debate. Texas A&M athletic director Trev Alberts didn’t mince words earlier this week, stating, “It only makes sense for the league to go to 9 conference games if the SEC is guaranteed Playoff spots.” That’s a diplomatic way of pointing out that every extra conference matchup in the SEC feels like a mini-playoff game itself—brutal, bruising, and potentially damaging in a national race.

As for that SEC-B1G challenge idea floating in the ether? It’s not official. Yet. The proposed series could come bundled in a lucrative standalone TV package—because, of course, every new rivalry must first be monetized. Leave it for Brian Kelly to speak for it.

Brian Kelly ‘speaks for the room’

LSU head coach Brian Kelly isn’t shy about what he wants—and neither are his coaching peers in the SEC. On Wednesday, Kelly threw his full support behind a rumored scheduling alliance between the SEC and Big Ten, and let’s just say, he made the message loud and clear.

“Our first goal would be wanting to play Big Ten teams as coaches,” Kelly said. “I can speak for the room. We want to play Big Ten teams, but you’ve got to get a partner. You’ve got to get a partner who says, we’re in for that, too.” Translation? The SEC’s ready to dance—now it’s up to the Big Ten to RSVP.

Kelly emphasized that the SEC coaches’ preference has been communicated loud and clear. “So we’ve made our voice clear, our athletic directors know that as well that we would like that. Our commissioner obviously heard us well. The rest will be up to what gets negotiated.”

But why the push for a cross-conference clash every year? “The Big Ten right now holds it on the SEC,” Kelly admitted. “They’ve won the last two national championships, that’s the reality of it. We want to get challenged in that regard, and we’d like to be able to get that done.” Arkansas coach Sam Pittman agreed as well, mostly; the only difference was he wanted 8 games. Regardless of whether it has to be 9, then Pittman, too, wants to be pitted against a B1G foe.