Kirk Herbstreit says Brian Kelly needs to be aggressive from the start vs. Alabama

Saturday morning, ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit joined SportsCenter to break down what has to go right for LSU to topple Alabama for a second consecutive season, this time on the road.

Specifically, Herbstreit loves what he’s seen from Tiger head coach Brian Kelly in these big games so far at LSU. Sure, the Tigers have taken some shootout losses but he’s been completely unafraid to let the offense take big shots all year long, which all starts with his superstar quarterback Jayden Daniels.

Herbstreit explained that LSU will not come out and try to win a 10-7 ballgame like the Tiger teams of six or seven years ago. Instead, these are two clubs that no longer dominate with defense alone and have the firepower to push this final score into the 40s or even the 50s.

“Well, I love Brian Kelly’s approach in games like this, where everything’s at stake and you think, okay, they’re going to ease themselves in on the road and take it easy. That won’t be his approach,” says Kirk Herbstreit, noting the increased trust and aggressiveness Kelly has developed in his QB and offense as as whole.

“I think that’s where he’s changed the most as a head coach. He’ll come in here and he’s gonna trust his quarterback. Now, what I mean by that is… when you’re backed up to your own goal line, are you gonna be ultra-conservative and punt and let’s be careful, let’s not make a mistake. That’s not how he will coach in this game. He knows it’s going to take an aggressive mindset from his quarterback.”

Brian Kelly knows…you can’t coach to not lose this game. You simply have to go out and win it yourself.

“He knows it’s going to take an aggressive mindset from the play-calling, and I think overall, the energy, and what separates this game is… when you get into these environments, you can’t coach not to lose. You have to coach to win from the very first time you get the football, and I think that’s Brian Kelly’s strength.”

Of course, it’s a lot more favorable to be aggressive when you have one of the Heisman front-runners and the top dual-threat quarterbacks in the country taking snaps.

“And I think Jayden Daniels, their quarterback, that allows him to really approach this game in that way. So don’t expect them to dip their big toe in. They’re going to come right after you and see if you’re good enough to win the game.”

Tuscaloosa should be in for a barnburner this evening as these two rivals clash to kick of their Novembers.