When LSU comes to town on Saturday, it will mark one of Clemson’s biggest home openers in quite some time.

Make no mistake, this one will be significant for both teams, and for a multitude of reasons. Some might go straight to the playoff implications argument. The winner certainly gets a resume boost, but the loser is far from out of the picture.

LSU has lost five straight season openers and badly wants to snap that streak. So much so that head coach Brian Kelly has really made this game a point of emphasis for LSU.

Clemson has dropped its last two season openers, as well. On top of that, Clemson has lost three straight to SEC teams, and losing this one, after receiving so much preseason hype, would certainly start an avalanche of narratives centering on Dabo Swinney’s program no longer being able to win on the biggest stages against the nation’s top teams.

All those things have been pretty well covered in the weeks leading up to the game. One thing that hasn’t gotten as much play is the vastly different portal philosophies these two programs have taken. Swinney has long been criticized for his overly conservative approach, but he did finally dip into the portal over the offseason, adding three players to the roster.

DE Will Heldt might have been the biggest addition, seeing as he is expected to start, but WR Tristan Smith is also expected to play a key role this season. Former five-star LB Jeremiah Alexander should have plenty of opportunities, as well.

Kelly took the opposite approach, adding 18 portal players to the LSU roster, with at least one service ranking it as the top portal class in the country. 16 were signed during the winter window, with two more being added in the spring. There is no doubt, Kelly is feeling the pressure to win now and get the Bayou Bengals into the playoff this season.

Heading into his fourth season at LSU, Kelly signed several defensive transfers, boosting the talent level and depth along the defensive front, on top of adding some key pieces to the back end.

Former Florida State DE Patrick Payton is expected to start, with former Florida DE Jack Plyburn and former Nebraska DE Jamari Butler also expected to play key roles. Former USF DT Bernard Gooden, one of the top players available during the spring window, was also added.

Kelly also made several moves to improve the pass defense, adding former Virginia Tech CB Mansoor Delane, former NC State S TaMarcus Cooley and former Houston S AJ Haulcy.

LSU also went to the portal to add some key pass catchers, giving QB Garrett Nussmeier even more weapons at his disposal. Former Kentucky WR Barion Brown, who Clemson fans are already pretty familiar with, was signed. Veteran Nic Anderson was also added after spending his first three seasons at Oklahoma.

Kelly was also able to snag TE Bauer Sharp from Oklahoma. He led the Sooners in receptions (42) and receiving yards (324) last season.

Needing to replace four starters along the OL, Kelly also strengthened this group by going to the portal. Arguably, the biggest addition was former Virginia Tech lineman Braelin Moore. He has experience starting at guard and center. Josh Thompson was signed from Northwestern. He started 11 games at right tackle in 2023, followed by 10 starts at right guard in 2024.

One more layer added to the big Top 10 showdown, or the battle between two coaches with very different approaches when it comes to building a roster.