COLUMN: Inconsistent LSU team should be defined by its highs
LSU wasn’t supposed to be here.
Nick Saban had one of his most talented and experienced rosters. Jimbo Fisher was getting ready to turn the corner at Texas A&M. In Mississippi, Lane Kiffin and Mike Leach had established programs.
LSU was rebuilding under a first-year coach. Nobody expected this team to win the west. Yet, it did, and here we are. This version of LSU, just as so many previous renditions have been, is volatile.
You never know which team is going to show up. The one that beat Alabama or the one that got rolled by Texas A&M. Against a juggernaut like Georgia, it might not matter. LSU has to play the game of its life to have a chance in this one.
This is LSU. The standard is winning national championships. The players know that and Brian Kelly does too.
But this team shouldn’t be defined by its lows, but by its highs.
It’s still hard to believe this LSU team is playing this weekend. This roster was worn thin when Kelly took over. It was coming off a bowl loss where Jontre Kirklin had to play quarterback for a team with 39 scholarship players.
That’s full rebuild state. Plugging a few holes in the transfer portal shouldn’t suddenly boost a program back into contention.
And in some ways, it didn’t. LSU’s loss last weekend revealed the Tigers aren’t ready to be part of the national picture. This is a good team, but not an elite one. Elite teams are consistent, and this LSU team is anything but.
As I’ve said all year, LSU’s playing with house money. Losses confirmed what we thought, that this team is rebuilding, while wins meant the program was ahead of schedule.
Saturday is no different. LSU will get to see how it stacks up against the nation’s best, but its safe to presume that gap is a little wide.
There are no moral victories at LSU and the standard is too high to take the “we’re just happy to be here” route, but making this game is something this team and fan base should be proud of.
Winning your division matters. If it’s all about the process of getting back to a national championship, this is just one step.
LSU might get smoked on Saturday and going from playoff contender to 9-4 in just the span of two weeks can be demoralizing, but it shouldn’t take away from the advances this staff and group made.
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A recipe for LSU upsetting Georgia
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