When it comes to beating top 25 competition in college football, few are better than LSU football coach Brian Kelly. Whether in South Bend, IN, or Baton Rouge, LA, it doesn’t matter. He’s an elite head coach, so when 247 Sports released their list of the best power five head coaches against top 25 competition, it was no surprise to see Kelly’s name present.
LSU football coach Brian Kelly is one of the best at beating top 25 teams
It’s one thing if you’re a head coach who consistently has good seasons. It’s another if you’re a head coach who consistently has good teams.
So often in college football, you see coaches have successful seasons in which they rack up a bunch of wins. The thing about that, though, is it’s essential to look into who they’re beating. When LSU football coach Brian Kelly was at Notre Dame, he consistently found his teams having good seasons.
Not only that, but they were consistently beating some of the top teams in the country, showing that they were also good teams, not just teams that had good seasons.
Now, Kelly is bringing that elite coaching ability to Baton Rouge, and it’s already beginning to pay off. In one season with the Tigers, Kelly put together a 10-4 season with two top-25 wins. In total, Kelly has a 33-31 record versus top 25 opponents.
This success has deservingly earned him a spot among the country’s best. On Thursday, Brad Crawford of 247 Sports released a list of the top power five head coaches against top 25 competition. Unsurprisingly, Kelly was right up near the top of the list. Here is what Crawford had to say regarding Kelly’s spot on his list:
“Brian Kelly was 2-2 against top-25 teams during his first season at LSU, resulting in a divisional championship and berth in the SEC title game. What more can you ask from the former leader at Notre Dame? Most of his other 31 career wins against top 25 opponents came with the Fighting Irish, the problem being he could never win the big one. He has a national championship game loss to Nick Saban on his record and a couple failed playoff trips. With elite talent in Baton Rouge, he’ll get more opportunities soon.”
The Tigers’ football program could be searching for a national championship in 2023
The main issue with coach Brian Kelly’s teams up in South Bend, IN, was he couldn’t recruit at a level necessary to compete for national championships.
Year in and year out, he had his teams competing with the best of the best, but they could never get over the hump. That’s why coach Kelly still doesn’t have a national championship to his name.
Now, in Baton Rouge, he might finally have his opportunity.
One of the main reasons for LSU football consistently being able to compete for titles is because of their location. To the east, they have Florida. If you go south, there’s southern Louisiana. Then, to the west, there’s Texas. All three areas are incredibly rich in football talent, and now Kelly has plenty of opportunity to recruit those areas.
While Brian Kelly likely won’t come out and say it himself, this program has national championships on its mind. So far this summer, running back Logan Diggs, wide receiver Kyren Lacy and quarterback Jayden Daniels have not shied away from the topic.
Will they be able to take that step forward in 2023? It will be difficult, but certainly not impossible. One thing is for sure, though, coach Kelly wants that national title, and it will be hard for college football to stop him over the coming years.
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