It’s hard to know what to expect in the first season under a new head coach.
Sometimes, first-year coaches hit the ground running and find immediate success with their new teams. Other times, coaches can struggle to find their footing right away, even if they ultimately achieve success — i.e. Saban, Nick.
For [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] and LSU this fall, the potential variance is even more pronounced given the number of new faces and transfers expected to play major roles. The Daily Advertiser’s Koki Riley looked at both sides of the coin and broke down the best and worst-case scenarios for Kelly’s inaugural campaign.
Best case: 10-2. LSU has a very similar season to Michigan State’s last year. The pass rush dominates and Kayshon Boutte becomes the best receiver in college.
Worst case: 6-6. The Tigers show flashes, but all of the new pieces never fit together. The offensive line struggles, and there are multiple injuries to the secondary.
It’s hard to find fault in Riley’s breakdown here. Even with an SEC West schedule, the Tigers are talented enough that if all the pieces come together in the right way, the ceiling could be surprisingly high. At the same time, it’s hard to bank on that, and if quarterback play is a limiting factor, there could be a handful of losses in that schedule.
In actuality, the true result will likely fall somewhere in the middle (cutting-edge analysis, I know). There could be some growing pains in Year 1, and the Tigers are likely to slip up once or twice in games they shouldn’t. Still, this team has the capability of pulling off an upset or two, as well.
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