What a difference a year makes when it comes to LSU’s defense. Ole Miss rolled up a school record 706 yards of offense against the Tigers last year, but they only reached the end zone twice last Saturday night.
Coach Brian Kelly says the tackling was much better this time.
“We didn’t tackle anybody last year, so the fundamentals of playing good defense were in place and then we were able to do things when it got into predictable down and distances and we sacked the quarterback more times than he’s been sacked at any time,” Kelly said.
Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart was sacked a career-high six times.
Kelly said the Tigers won first down, which put the Rebels in obvious passing situations.
The coach also said defensive coordinator Blake Baker did a great job in giving Dart different looks, which kept Ole Miss off balance.
Ole Miss likes playing up tempo, and so does the Tigers next opponent, Arkansas. The Razorbacks brought back former head coach Bobby Petrino to run their offense.
So far, the results have been good. The Hogs are third in the SEC in total offense.
Kelly said Petrino’s scheme is tough to prepare for.
“It is diverse in its running game, I don’t know that I’ve seen as many schemes offensively, like you can’t rep all the run schemes that I have, it is diverse, so he is made a big difference in what they do offensively,” Kelly said.
Freshman to change positions
Six-foot-seven tight end Trey’Dez Green caught a touchdown pass in the win over Ole Miss. Green has caught three passes and two of them have been touchdowns.
Kelly liked the idea of splitting Green out wide.
“He’s a talented player, we saw him on the touchdown how easy it is for him to flash his hands and catch the football and he just gives us more versality, so I think you are going to see that moving forward,” Kelly said.
Kelly is optimistic receiver CJ Daniels will return from a knee injury, while Chris Hilton is day-to-day with a leg injury.