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Livvy Dunne and Lane Kiffin add star appeal to LSU’s win over Alabama originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
There are gymnastics meets. And then there are LSU gymnastics meets.
Friday night inside the Pete Maravich Assembly Center felt more like a postseason stage than late February. No. 2 LSU knocked off No. 3 Alabama 197.975 to 197.600 in front of 13,292 fans, stretching its home winning streak to 19 straight.
It was loud. It was tense. It was very SEC. And it had courtside star power.
New LSU football coach Lane Kiffin was attending his first gymnastics meet in Baton Rouge. The production, the fire, the precision, the athletes warming up across the floor all left an impression.
“It really is amazing,” Kiffin said on SEC Network. “When I walk through to breakfast in the morning, it’s like an Olympic training site down there. This just speaks to the amazing athletes we have.”
Clout chasers @livvydunne@aleahfinn 🤣 @SECNetwork@LSUgymhttps://t.co/GbXksiH78y
— Lane Kiffin (@Lane_Kiffin) February 28, 2026
Moments later, the interview took a playful turn when Livvy Dunne and Aleah Finnegan drifted into frame behind him, smiling and mugging for the camera.
Kiffin leaned into it later on X, jokingly calling the duo “clout chasers.”
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Dunne embraced the moment on Instagram, calling the night “absolutely electric” and adding “@lsugym is just different.” After beam, she posted “Now that’s a 10.”
That 10 belonged to Kailin Chio, again. The sophomore anchored beam with a perfect 10.000, her sixth career perfect score and fifth this season. It came at a critical point. LSU had battled through early bobbles. Alabama was within reach. The margin was shrinking. Then Chio grabbed control.
“I got off the beam and I told Konnor that it was for her,” Chio said, referencing teammate Konnor McClain. “Seeing her go up before and do one of the best beam routines of her life. she deserved that 10 in my eyes and I just got off that beam and I just told her like I’m so proud of you. I just had her back and just honestly did it for her.”
McClain’s night was its own story. She had been frustrated. Injured. Even went through an X-ray earlier in the week. Sitting out was discussed, but she refused.
“I’m going to be okay, McClain said. "I mean, I tell my teammates every day, I’m going to be straight regardless. And so, I mean, regardless of what came back on that X-ray, I mean, I’m always a little scared. I’m so injured. Like, I just get a little tired of it."
Head coach Jay Clark described the meet exactly how it felt.
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“It was a grinder," Clark said. "It was nip and tuck through the whole thing and we showed a lot of guts. Couldn’t really capture any real sustained momentum, but we never let things get away from us either. Had to grind one out tonight.”
That identity showed. Despite early mistakes, LSU closed beam strong and finished floor with a 49.600 to seal the win over one of the SEC’s traditional powers.
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The celebration will be brief.
LSU returns Sunday for the Podium Challenge at the Raising Cane’s River Center in Baton Rouge, facing Alabama again along with Arizona and North Carolina at 4 p.m. ET