LSU head coach Brian Kelly made it clear that he wasn't going to use the Tigers' status as heavy underdogs as a motivator. He wants them to feel like they belong, because they did all the work to make that true.
So when he addressed his team prior to their departure to Atlanta for the SEC Championship against No. 1 Georgia, that's what he went back to.
“We spent this entire season trying to think the right way, establish the right habits, take a team that last year finished last in the SEC West and now we have flipped that and finished first," Kelly said. "We have one chance, so no sense of holding anything back tomorrow. For the state of Louisiana, for everybody that follows this football team. For everybody that loves LSU, you get a chance, one chance to carry that for the entire state."
The Tigers chronicled their trip up to their arrival at Mercedes Benz Stadium. Can't see the video above? Click here.
The Tigers and Bulldogs kick off at 3:10 p.m. for the SEC title. Because of a loss to Texas A&M in the regular season finale, that will be the end of the road in terms of the College Football Playoff for LSU. But that doesn't mean there will be any less riding on the game, they've got a title to play for.
And realistically, they are playing for something down the road: A win would likely secure a spot in the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans, something that would mark a fitting bookend for a team that began its 2022 season with a disappointing loss to Florida State in the Caesars Superdome.
Tigers fans were already out in force Thursday and Friday, supporting a team that far outstripped expectations regardless of how things go the rest of the way. And all they'll ask for is that the Tigers fight to the end. That's a wish Kelly has continued to implore his team to fulfill.
“Make a statement in this building," Kelly said, "one play at a time."
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