LSU offensive lineman Liam Shanahan said Saturday's loss to the Mississippi State Bulldogs was a bit of a "wake-up call" for the Tigers.
"We have to really be attacking everything that we do every single day to make sure that we're ready on Saturdays to be the best team that we can be," he said.
That's why Shanahan said this week's preparation and matchup against Vanderbilt Commodores in Nashville will be huge for LSU.
"We got punched in the face on Saturday," Shanahan said. "So now how are we going to respond, you know... Vanderbilt's a pretty good football team. They played Texas A&M real well, so it's going to be a challenge, but we're going to rise to the challenge and I'm excited."
Shanahan said the Tigers know they needed to make corrections following the loss Saturday particularly on the offensive line which gave up seven sacks to the Bulldogs. He said Mississippi State's defense had a lot of twists and blitzes and that the LSU offensive was prepared for them but didn't execute well enough.
LSU quarterback Myles Brennan shouldered some of the blame for the pressure he saw, saying he held the ball too long at times Saturday, But Shanahan said the Tigers' offensive line needs to "make it easier on Brennan.
"He's getting a lot of unfair criticism, I feel like," Shanahan said. "You know, where (as) we really have to help him and make it easier and that's what we're working on this week.
"I'm planning on trying to work with him and and meet with him kind of individually so we can get on the same page even more and see what we can do to make his life as easy as possible."
Shanahan also thought the offensive line did a good job of run block for the Tigers three ball carriers, John Emery Jr, Chris Curry and Tyrion Davis-Price on Saturday but said the unit could still improve.
"I really think that once we get the ball rolling and get a run game established it helps us as an offensive line get into a rhythm," he said. "Throughout the game that helps helps across the board, helps Myles get settled in and it really makes it a lot easier."
