Brian Kelly explains importance of now having SEC-level talent
Brian Kelly made the leap to the SEC after 18 seasons at Central Michigan, Cincinnati and Notre Dame. While his Fighting Irish teams were competitive during his 12 year tenure in South Bend, the SEC is a whole new ball game. Thankfully, the Tigers will provide him with a winning opportunity due to a roster chock full of talent.
Kelly discussed his new roster down in Baton Rouge during SEC Media Days in Atlanta. He named multiple players at several positions who will play a role in helping LSU win games this fall.
“I’m pretty excited. Think of Kayshon Boutte. I think of we’ve got four quarterbacks that I think are all talented. I think of Maason Smith on defense, BJ Ojulari who’s here today, Jack Bech. There’s talent even though we’re going through a little bit of a transition,” said Kelly. “We’re going to have to play some younger players and guys in the transfer portal. I feel really good about where we are.”
Kelly inherits a roster that stayed mostly intact following the departure of Ed Orgeron. While they lost QB Max Johnson and CB Eli Ricks to SEC West rivals, they brought in multiple other pieces in the transfer portal. They also added the No. 13 class in On3’s 2022 Consensus Team Recruiting Rankings. Kelly says it’s going to enable him to hit the ground running. That’s the expectation within Tiger Stadium and he know it entering his first season.
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“Look, at the end of the day, you’ve got to win football games at LSU. This isn’t about you get a transition, they give you a year off to figure it out. No, that’s not happening,” Kelly said. “You’ve got to play well, you’ve got to be well-coached and physical, and play for four quarters. I think we can do that.”
The SEC waits for no one and Brian Kelly’s pedigree leaves LSU fans expecting big things in his first year. With the talent he still has, though, their expectations may even be exceeded. They’ll have to wait and see how it looks on the field until the Tigers open against Florida State on September 4th.