Brian Kelly reacts to possible bowl matchup with Notre Dame

While it might lose some luster from opt outs, an LSU vs. Notre Dame bowl matchup would have plenty of juice. The headlining attraction: Tigers head coach Brian Kelly facing off against the Irish for the first time since leaving his post late in 2021.

And with a bevy of projections placing the Tigers in the ReliaQuest Bowl against Notre Dame, Kelly was asked about the possibility. He acknowledged it’d be a circus, to some extent, but tried to keep focus on the task at hand.

“Should be great for the media. You guys will have — it’ll be great for you guys,” Kelly said to some laughs in the room. “I hope that we get a bowl matchup that everybody’s excited about. But my focus right now is on Georgia State and we gotta play up to a standard to a team that has always risen up to the competition.”

Kelly continued with his praise for the Panthers, who he said have consistently caused Power 5 programs problems.

“Georgia State plays up. They had that great win against Tennessee a few years back. They played North Carolina tough. So this is a program builder for them. So my focus has been on Georgia State,” Kelly said.

The Tigers will likely be short a key offensive player

It appears as though LSU is going to be without its top running back for a second consecutive game. Kelly told reporters recently that it’s unlikely Logan Diggs will play this weekend when LSU hosts Georgia State.

Diggs has rushed for 635 yards and six touchdowns this season. He is averaging 5.6 yards per carry.

“I would say he’s doubtful,” Kelly said.

The Notre Dame transfer also missed last weekend’s game against Florida, which LSU won 52-35.

The Tigers didn’t miss a beat on offense without Diggs as star quarterback Jayden Daniels put together a record-setting performance.

The senior passed for 372 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 234 yards and two scores.

Outside of Daniels, the rest of the LSU rushing attack managed only 95 yards on 23 carries, so the Tigers did still appear to miss Diggs some.

Still, LSU is a big favorite for Saturday’s game against Georgia State, even with Diggs unlikely to suit up. The Tigers are currently favored by 32 points. It remains to be seen if Diggs will be able to return for the regular season finale against Texas A&M next weekend.