Brian Kelly shares biggest takeaway from first month in SEC

The start of Brian Kelly’s introduction to the SEC hasn’t shown any causes for concern yet. LSU is 2-0 in conference play so far with wins against Mississippi State and Auburn. However, there’s still a learning curve coming from an independent like Notre Dame and being dropped into the SEC.

Kelly joined ‘The Paul Finebaum Show’ to discuss some of the changes he has noticed in his new conference. He says the intangibles, the offensive skill sets, and the defensive lines are what have stuck out to him.

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“Fast and physical. I think the proliferation of the offensive talent, for me, has been probably the biggest thing. The skill talents,” said Kelly. “And then, the interior defensive lines across the board. This weekend, we’re gonna see probably 10 or 12 players roll in for Tennessee. So, I think it’s that consistent defensive line presence. Then the skill players on the perimeter are just outstanding at this level in the SEC.”

With credit to the Bulldogs and Tigers, those two teams aren’t even considered amongst the SEC’s best. Kelly may not have seen anything yet with Tennessee, Florida, Ole Miss, Alabama, Arkansas, and Texas A&M still on their schedule. It’s taken some hands-on learning, but Kelly is ready to really dive into the SEC when the Volunteers arrive in Baton Rouge this weekend.

Brian Kelly addresses LSU’s top 25 ranking, explains how perception is meeting reality

Things got off to a rocky start for LSU against Auburn, having to come back from down 17-0. This wasn’t anything new for Brian Kelly and the Tigers, though. They’ve been playing from behind all season long. Other than a Week 1 loss to Florida State, though, LSU has been winning and is now ranked for the first time since the preseason polls for the 2021 season.

While speaking at a press conference, Brian Kelly was asked about LSU breaking into the top 25 of the AP Poll rankings. In particular, he was asked if the perception of this LSU team was matching the reality of it.

“Perception versus reality,” Brian Kelly said. “You know, I think when you look at the body of work and who this football team is, you know there’s probably 35 teams that could be in the top-25, right, from 25 to 35…That really is, you know, a judgement call. We feel like at this point the development of our football team will continue to take place,” Brian Kelly said.

From there, Brian Kelly turned the question around. Instead of talking about whether he thought the perception of LSU as a top-25 team matched reality, he chose to speak about what LSU needs to do to be successful going forward and compete with the best teams in the SEC.

“I think the more germane question is how do you get off to a better start against Power-5 teams. So, you’re not [having to] rally in the second half. What I will make clear when I get a chance to talk to the team is having heart and, you know, fighting the way we do, that’s not gonna get it done against Tennessee. That’s not gonna get it done against Florida, or Mississippi, or Alabama. We’re going to have to execute better. Our details are going to have to be better, technically. We’ve got to coach better,” Brian Kelly said.

“Hopefully what’s come out of this is that we’ve learned that our preparation is going to have to be so much better. Then bring the heart, then bring that fight. You’re gonna need that too. You can’t just rely on that and play sloppy football and expect to win these games.”