Brian Kelly is no stranger to the motivational speech, he is the head coach of a football team after all. But he sure hopes his players aren't waiting for one.
With the potential they have left in the season his players better be able to handle that for themselves, particularly with a pair of SEC matchups they'll be favorites in left on the schedule and the SEC West crown well in sight.
"If they're asking me to keep the fire lit, we're in trouble. ... I've never been a guy that subscribes to the theory that it's my job to motivate them," Kelly said. "It's their job to motivate themselves. And so building that kind of intrinsic motivation through their preparation is my job, I need to prepare them. That's my job. And through preparation they'll build confidence that they're ready to play."
And it's a hard point to argue. If this LSU squad can't get themselves motivated for the potential of a Cinderella run to the SEC Championship and possibly even the College Football Playoff, what are they getting motivated for?
The first matchup they'll need to handle on that path is an underperforming Arkansas Razorbacks team that's coming off a loss to a currently independent Liberty Flames squad that will join Conference USA next season. Coming off back-to-back wins over top-10 opponents in Ole Miss and Alabama, it'd be easily qualified as a trap game.
"If I gotta go give rah-rah speeches, and do all that kind of stuff, we're going to be an up-and-down football team," Kelly said before adding: "and that hasn't been the case."
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Many members of this LSU squad should be familiar with the scenario the Razorbacks get to enjoy this weekend: That of spoiler. It's exactly what LSU found itself as back in 2020 when the Tigers went down to Gainesville as double-digit underdogs and stunned a Florida Gators squad that still had a path to the CFP. The Gators lost their cool, a shoe was thrown, Cade York kicked a ball for miles through the fog and it was LSU celebrating on its way out of the swamp. The Gators still won the SEC East and put up as good a fight against Alabama in the SEC Championship as any team did that season, but their CFP hopes were dashed regardless.
"Our guys understand what's at stake," Kelly said. "But they stayed focus on the right things. And that's, you know, the things they can control, right. They can't control anything else, but their preparation."
The Tigers should undoubtedly be motivated to make sure they don't suffer the same fate down the stretch of this season.
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INJURY UPDATES
Offensive lineman Garrett Dellinger is back healthy from a knee injury and will be worked into the rotation at guard along with Miles Frazier and Anthony Bradford. The approach to ease back in injured players has been an effective one for Kelly and his staff this season.
Cornerback Sevyn Banks is also progressing back from a head/neck injury suffered early in the win over Auburn, but Kelly declined to give a timetable on his potential return. LSU's head coach indicated he was on a similar timeline as Major Burns, who returned from a head/neck injury earlier this season.
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JAYDEN DANIELS HAS BULKED UP
It's pretty clear for anyone watching to see that Jayden Daniels has looked immensely more comfortable as the season's progressed. A good chunk of that is technical, with the junior holding a much clearer grasp of the offense and his role. But it's also physical. Daniels has added about 15 pounds, Kelly said, since he arrived at LSU earlier this year.
"It's the proper footwork. It's being in the right position to throw the ball on time. I mean, I think the best illustration is the 2-point play. He didn't make that throw earlier in the year. He would not have made that throw. So, you know, this is a combination of technically being sound, tactically understanding what's going on, mentally being in a better position because he's so much more confident. ... So his preparation is so much better, you know, as the season has unfolded."
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