Can Brian Kelly Win a National Championship at LSU?

Can Brian Kelly Win a National Championship at LSU?

The Brian Kelly experiment was successful in year one at LSU this past season. The Tigers had a bounce-back season in 2022 — you know a team has talent when they can beat Alabama.

We’ll look back at the 2022 LSU Tigers and remember the success: a 10-4 record (6-2 conference record), an SEC Championship appearance and the reassurance that their coach is likely the guy for the future.

But can Kelly be the guy to win the Tigers a national championship? It’s always the accolade that evaded the head coach at Notre Dame, so we’ll dive into what it will take Kelly to hoist a CFP National Championship Trophy in Baton Rouge.

Jayden Daniels has Proven Why Brian Kelly Wanted Him at LSU

The Bet-MGM betting odds currently have the Tigers listed at +2000 to win the National Championship in 2023. That’s good for eighth in CFB this season and third in the SEC. Speaking of third in the SEC, the biggest deflectors of LSU’s chances to win a title in the next few seasons have to be Alabama and Georgia.

LSU’s Alabama and Georgia Problem

The Georgia Bulldogs just won their second straight title in back-to-back years. On their path, they defeated the LSU Tigers 50-30 in the SEC Championship. Georgia will certainly be back in the SEC title game for years to come, and if LSU wants to get to the national championship, they’ll have to beat the Dawgs.

Georgia has out-recruited them this season, outplayed them in the SEC Championship, and did what they couldn’t at the biggest time. In all likelihood for the next few years, the SEC Champion will have to beat Georgia or be Georgia.

Alabama is another animal. In fact, they are the only dynasty in College Football in the 2010s. While some may argue that Alabama’s dynasty may be dwindling. I’d argue that as long as they have Nick Saban, they’ll be okay.

LSU defeated Alabama in 2019 and 2022. To get back to those days, they better hope Nick Saban is on his way out. Alabama boasts the No. 1 recruiting class again in 2023.

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Recruiting: Kelly’s Strength

LSU and Brian Kelly are just fine in the recruiting department … for now. They again ranked behind Alabama and Georgia in 2023, finishing third in the SEC, a notch better than last season where they finished fifth nationally.

Although the Tigers didn’t sign a single player on National Signing Day, they took advantage of Early Signing Day, signing 25 new recruits. Kelly is known for his wild recruiting tactics to get players in Baton Rouge and keep them there.

Kelly is an excellent recruiter. Recruiting likely won’t be a problem for LSU for the next few seasons nationally … but it may be a problem in the SEC. Once again, Alabama was first in the nation and Georgia was second.

The Verdict

Will Brian Kelly’s LSU Tigers win a National Championship in his tenure? It’s impossible to say so, but the Tigers will have 10 years to see what Kelly can do.

The biggest hurdles to jump over will be Alabama and Georgia. Can the Tigers defeat their big brothers in the conference? It will be tough, but that’s what’s necessary to rise to the top.

Kelly defeated Alabama in his first season in the SEC. If he can get out of the best conference in football, he’ll have a chance to win it all.

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