Brian Kelly breaks down 'lethal' combo of Brock Bowers, Darnell Washington

No. 1 Georgia and No. 11 LSU are set to collide in the SEC Championship Game on Saturday, and one of the chief tasks for Tigers coach Brian Kelly is going to be finding some way to stop the Bulldogs’ excellent tight end duo of Brock Bowers and Darnell Washington.

He knows it won’t be easy.

“I think ‘lethal’ is a good word,” Kelly said. “Darnell Washington is a large person, 6’7″. I mean, there’s nobody that really has a favorable matchup against him. Then Bowers, he leads the team I believe in receptions. He’s a Lombardi Award finalist.”

Here’s what the pair has done so far this season.

Bowers has led the team in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. He’s got 46 catches for 645 yards and five touchdowns. He’s also added six carries for 93 yards and three touchdowns.

Washington has recorded 25 catches for 403 yards and a touchdown.

And it’s hard to pinpoint exactly how to defend the dynamic duo. As Kelly pointed out, Washington is just a difficult matchup from a size and athleticism standpoint. Bowers’ versatility and the way Georgia’s coaches use him makes it tough to get a bead on him.

“Coach (Todd) Monken gets him involved in everything from handoff sweeps to, I don’t know if he’s thrown the ball yet, but I’m sure he will,” Kelly said. “He’s just a versatile player. He’s a guy that can break games open.”

Brock Bowers and Darnell Washington will be a focal point, but Tigers have to play to their identity

Realistically you’re not going to completely stop Brock Bowers and Darnell Washington. They’re just too good and Georgia’s ground game is equally capable of pounding games away if you focus too much on them.

So while LSU will certainly be aware of their presence, Kelly is much more focused on his team playing its game.

That didn’t happen Saturday in a road loss at Texas A&M.

“They know how they have to play. I mean we don’t have a margin for error,” Kelly said. “We have to play with grit. We have to play with fire. We have to play to our identity. And if we don’t, we’re not the kind of team we need to be. So I think they’re anxious to go back out and play up to their standard, and that’s the way I feel that they will play.”

Kelly isn’t worried about another LSU letdown performance in the SEC Championship Game, though. He’s sensed a renewed edge from players since the loss to the Aggies.

Georgia and LSU are scheduled for a 4 p.m. ET kickoff in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga., with the game slated for a national broadcast on CBS.