Florida State destroys LSU football over the weekend (Not pictured) – FSU Fans Cheering at Football Game — Courtesy: Shutterstock — Image by: Ruth Peterkin
After Florida State destroyed LSU, the tearing went on in a news conference following the game that was almost frightening.
The flaws in LSU football were exposed by Brian Kelly, who spared no one from his scathing criticism. After losing to a top-10 opponent in a hostile setting, he called out himself, his staff, and his players in an unfettered manner that is uncommon for a college coach to do.
“We certainly are not the football team I thought we were,” Kelly said Sunday after No. 5 LSU’s 45-24 loss to No. 8 Florida State, “and we’ve got to do a much better job, obviously, in developing our football team. We clearly were short in a lot of areas tonight, and that falls on me.”
Kelly was just getting started.
“This is a total failure,” he said, “from a coaching standpoint and a player standpoint that we have to obviously address and we have to own.”
Kelly compared his team to a group of imposters.
“We thought we were the two-time defending national champion Georgia Bulldogs or something,” he said. “I don’t know what we thought, but we were mistaken.”
Mercy.
These strong criticisms of performance are typically saved for those who sit in my chair.
Since LSU’s coach made no attempt to defend his squad, I probably shouldn’t bother, but I will state that this game between two talented teams was close for more than three quarters. LSU lost more than a few scores as a result of making mistakes on a few crucial fourth-down plays.
But in reality, FSU outplayed LSU at the line of scrimmage, Jordan Travis, their quarterback, outperformed Jayden Daniels, their wideouts, and LSU’s secondary appeared to be the weakness Kelly had feared it might be.
During the first half, LSU put some pressure on Travis, but after the break, he was able to play comfortably in the pocket as he and outstanding wide receivers Keon Coleman and Johnny Wilson torched the Tigers.
The Seminoles’ best players performed admirably.
The Tigers’ stars performed like regular people.
After the manner in which Harold Perkins vanished, the Witness Protection Program should consult LSU for advice on how to conceal a person. As a freshman, Perkins was a troublesome edge rusher. Before this season, LSU switched him to inside linebacker. One of the most promising young players in the country made five tackles against FSU without ever bothering the quarterback.
“We put (Perkins) in a position last year where he was, ‘See ball, get ball,’” Kelly said. “Now he’s in a position where he’s (asked to do more).”
Because of what it saw on Sunday from one of its anticipated stars, LSU may want to switch Perkins to see the ball, get the ball. This is especially true for a defense with a patchwork secondary. There must be more threats from the Tigers’ front.
Daniels appeared to have gone back to the quarterback who failed to make reads in the opening loss to Florida State of the previous campaign. On too many run-pass option plays, he either failed to notice open targets or misread them.
“What Coach was talking about, the urgency and the choices we make, he’s right,” Daniels said. “Everything falls back on me. Being the leader and the quarterback on the team, I have to get the guys going.”
LSU made hardly any attempts to run the ball, possibly realizing that its offensive line couldn’t withstand the physicality of FSU.
Kelly had a lot of confidence a few days prior. In his words, LSU would “beat the heck out of Florida State.”
The Tigers failed to live up to their coach’s lofty rhetoric.
In response to his team’s retort, FSU coach Mike Norvell remarked, “It’s good to be able to play the game.”
Kelly gained a reputation at Notre Dame as a coach who would win the majority of his games but drop the crucial ones. That storyline was put on hold following LSU’s upset of Alabama in November, but it is now back in the spotlight following the Tigers’ second defeat to FSU in as many seasons.
After a disastrous defeat to the Seminoles, Kelly’s first season at LSU was marked by the Tigers’ ability to bounce back and display resiliency. This season wasn’t meant to be a feel-good tale about a club rising from the ashes.
With a high preseason rating, a celebrated veteran quarterback, a wealth of talent, and expectations of competing for the College Football Playoff, LSU arrived here.
There was a lot of buzz surrounding a product that wasn’t as good as it was made out to be, but don’t just take it from me. Hear it directly from the coach who put this effort together.
“Disappointing,” Kelly remarked.
That was one of his more forgiving evaluations of this failure.
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Melissa’s career in writing started more than 20 years ago. Today, she lives in South Florida with her husband and two boys.
