Brian Kelly provides an initial evaluation of LSU's spring game performance

Brian Kelly has gained a reputation as a program builder, and his prior stops at Cincinnati and Notre Dame back that up. Now, Kelly is ready to bring LSU back to the forefront of college football, and it all started Saturday during his first spring game.

“First of all, I think from my perspective and talking to our staff after the spring game, we accomplished what we wanted and that was to try to create as much as possible a game like situation,” Kelly said. “I wanted to see how our guys reacted to a game like atmosphere.”

One of the biggest question marks regarding LSU next season is where Kelly will land on a decision regarding a starting quarterback. Incoming transfer Jayden Daniels and true freshman Walker Howard competed Saturday with returners Myles Brennan and Garrett Nussmeier for snaps, and Kelly said if anything, the spring game made his decision even harder regarding choosing a starter.

Instead, it was the defense that jumped out to an 8-0 lead thanks to three sacks, a three-and-out and a third down stop. Former five-star defensive back Maason Smith recorded two of the opening sacks while Desmond Little had the other.

“I thought our defense started out with the right mindset,” Kelly said. “They came out with energy. I did not think our offense did; we had to get them thinking right at halftime, and you saw the results of that. I thought they came out in the second half with a better mindset.

“You want to get those accomplished in this kind of scenario. I don’t want to do that in the opener, so from that perspective, mission accomplished and trying to create this game, more than just a practice.”

Kelly is still getting his feet wet in Baton Rouge but his first spring camp with the team under his belt, the puzzle pieces are starting to fit together with a full summer ahead of the new head coach and his Tigers.

“Too many penalties, things we’ve got to clean up from that perspective and, you know, I think that by and large, there were a lot of plays out there that can be for us evaluated, that gives us an opportunity to build our strengths and weaknesses,” Kelly said. “So when you step back and look at it, I feel really good about where we are in our evaluation process moving forward, and that’s what you want going through the spring.”