Damien Harris Names "Most Dangerous" Team Outside the Top 10 in Preseason AP Poll

Former Alabama running back Damien Harris believes this SEC program is the most dangerous left out of the AP Poll's preseason top 10.

Nov 8, 2025; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Alabama linebacker Yhonzae Pierre (42) fights off a block by LSU offensive lineman Carius Curne (57) to sack LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier (18) for a loss at Saban Field at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Alabama defeated LSU 20-9. Mandatory Credit: Gary Cosby Jr.-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The AP Top 25 college football preseason poll was officially released on Monday afternoon.

The SEC once again had a strong showing in the poll as nine of the league's 16 members were represented. The league occupied half of the top 10 spots in the poll, and a pair of SEC programs were left just outside the top 10.

Former Alabama running back Damien Harris believes one SEC team outside of the AP poll's preseason top 10 is particularly dangerous. Harris cited No. 11 LSU as the scariest team outside the top 10 due to their controversial poaching of Lane Kiffin, which played out over the course of the 2025 regular season.

"It's the LSU Tigers, because if it's not, what have we been talking about all offseason?" Harris said. "If not, what are they paying Lane Kiffin all this money for. If not, why did Lane Kiffin leave Ole Miss, where he said he didn't feel like he had the ultimate resources to win a national championship, to recruit, to do everything that he needed to do to be successful?

"If not, we have just wasted not just an offseason (but) more than half of last season on what Lane Kiffin going to LSU means for this program."

Why is LSU viewed as dangerous in 2026?

There is a general feeling of volatility surrounding the Tigers in 2026.

As Harris alluded to, Kiffin was hired with the expectation of guiding LSU to a College Football Playoff berth in the near future, the way he did at Ole Miss. The roster composition certainly reflects that of a College Football Playoff contender; the transfers weren't just depth pieces at their previous programs, but rather proven commodities primed to become coveted NFL prospects in the near future.

Some pundits have gone so far as to say the Tigers are national championship-caliber, a lofty expectation in a coach's first season at a new program. LSU's schedule is also among the most challenging nationally, a harsh reality for every team within the SEC following the league's decision to expand its conference schedule to nine games.

Kiffin and Harris were together at Alabama for two seasons

Alabama running back Damien Harris (34) stiff arms Florida State defensive back Derwin James (3) as he makes a long run in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta Saturday, September 2, 2017. [Staff Photo/Gary Cosby Jr.] Alabama Vs Florida State | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

In the months after Kiffin's firing from USC in 2013, Nick Saban hired him to replace the Michigan-bound Doug Nussmeier as the Crimson Tide's offensive coordinator.

Harris was a top-three running back prospect in the 2015 recruiting cycle when he arrived at Alabama. Derrick Henry was the primary running back for the Crimson Tide that season, but Harris still added 46 carries for 157 yards and a score in its national championship run.

The most productive season for Harris on the ground at Alabama was in 2016, Kiffin's final season as offensive coordinator; he ran for 1,040 yards and a pair of touchdowns that season. Kiffin left to become the head coach at Florida Atlantic prior to the Crimson Tide's College Football Playoff run that season.

Harris played two more seasons at Alabama before he was selected by the New England Patriots in the 2019 NFL draft. He finished his career with the Crimson Tide rushing for 3,073 yards and 23 touchdowns and catching 52 passes for 407 yards and a pair of touchdowns.