Brian Kelly explains if he feels LSU's issues are fixable over final three weeks of season

LSU‘s chances at making the College Football Playoff may be over after its loss to Alabama in Week 11, but head coach Brian Kelly is optimistic his Tigers can finish the season on a high note.

At 6-3, LSU has the opportunity to win 10 games this season if it were to win the final three games on its regular season schedule and emerge victorious in their bowl game. Kelly explained where his program stands after losing its third game this season.

“It’s reasonable to look at how we can put our players in better positions to succeed each and every week,” Kelly said on Monday. “You always are going to have to deal with injuries within your roster and you have to have the next-man-up mentality. But that doesn’t mean you can’t, as coaches, always look to how you can be better at getting your players to be the best versions of themselves.

“So what do we have to do to help [Garrett Nussmeier]? … So I think there’s always the opportunity to grow and get better in the season. As I said, you know, there’s a lot for this football team to look forward to. We’ve got, you know, the opportunity to — again — finish the season strong and look toward a minimum of a 10-win season again, and that’s important for this program.”

Kelly called the 10-win minimum a standard in Baton Rouge, and a goal they strive for every season. Even though Saturday’s loss to Alabama produced the most lopsided negative outcome of LSU’s season so far, the Tigers have proven they can bounce back after a loss already this season despite having lost their last two outings.

LSU lost its season opener to USC before rattling off six-straight wins heading into the Week 9 matchup against Texas A&M. Despite losing the last two matchups as the final weeks of the regular season approach, Kelly appears confident his team can turn the season around.

That effort begins against Florida on Saturday. They’ll wrap things up with two final home games against Vanderbilt and Oklahoma, respectively. Likely to be favored in each of those three matchups, they can’t have another hiccup if they want to reach that 10-win standard.