By ANDRE CHAMPAGNE, Tiger Rag Staff Reporter
It’s no secret that LSU’s offense has some serious work to do if the Tigers want a shot at playing in late December this year in the playoffs. But head coach Brian Kelly says the plan is to still play to his strengths – the defense.
Meanwhile, offensive coordinator Joe Sloan has taken a lot of criticism from fans and media after the Tigers scored only one offensive touchdown in a 20-10 win over Florida despite five interceptions.
Updated LSU gamer: “Yeah, that was one of the SEC classics, right? We did whatever was necessary to win the game.” … Brian Kelly. https://t.co/0xc9oFhm2B
— Glenn Guilbeau (@SportBeatTweet) September 14, 2025
“He is doing what he is asked to do to manage the games the way we need to,” Kelly said. “We have a top ten defense in the country, and we need to play to that strength. And so sometimes, you have to pull back a little bit here and there. He’s being a great coach from that perspective. Offensive coordinators want to score points too, but sometimes I’m tapping the brakes here a little bit in those situations, because that’s going to be the identity of this football team.”
LSU had several opportunities to go for it on fourth-and-short situations against Florida, but didn’t.
“On three occasions when the analytics said to go for it, I decided to punt the football to play field position,” Kelly said.
Retro football appears to be back to stay at LSU this season:https://t.co/g9iufj2AkA
— Glenn Guilbeau (@SportBeatTweet) September 15, 2025
LSU’s defense is allowing the Tigers’ offense to slow down compared to last season when stops were hard to come by, and the offense needed to score more. In 2024, LSU converted 12 of 24 times on fourth down. So far this season, the Tigers are 0-1 on fourth down attempts.
“Last year we were going for it on fourth down,” Kelly said. “Last year, we were taking the analytics and running that as a third- and a fourth-down play. So, if we got to fourth and one, we were going. But this year, I’m playing it a little bit different, based upon the strength of our defense. Last year, we needed to score more points. Now as we move forward, we’re going to need to do both.”
LSU’s defense this season is No. 5 in the nation and No. 1 in the SEC against the run with 56 yards allowed a game. It is also 11th in the nation and No. 2 in the SEC in points allowed at 9.0 and 25th nationally and sixth in the league in total defense with 260 yards allowed a game.
“We have a great defense, and when we get into games like that (against Florida or the 17-10 win at Clemson), I’m going to make sure we minimize any of the mistakes that could be made on offense,” Kelly said.
LSU’s total offense ranks 94th in the nation, averaging 345.7 yards a game. Its scoring offense comes in at 107th, averaging 20 points a game.
LSU QUARTERBACK GARRETT NUSSMEIER INJURY
But quarterback Garrett Nussmeier has been nursing an abdomen injury since preseason camp. And Sloan may be trying to be too exacting with his play calling process.
“Maybe we were trying to be too perfect in our (Sloan’s) play calls,” Kelly said. “Let’s just go play. Let those guys get the ball in space. And the same thing with Garrett, doing a little bit too much, checking every play. He’s so smart, he can manage the whole thing, but sometimes less is more.”
Be the first to comment