Kelly focuses on trust to rebuild quality LSU program; has leadership on both sides of the ball

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - New LSU head coach Brian Kelly and his Tigers are not expected to challenge for anything significant this year.

LSU was picked fifth out of seven teams in the SEC West at SEC Media Days, with the Tigers expected to win six or seven games overall this year.

Kelly has been doing his best since December to not only rebuild the Tigers’ roster but rebuild it with quality young men who truly want to be at LSU. Trust has certainly been a big theme around the program in recent months.

Wide receiver Jack Bech certainly wasn’t a wide-eyed freshman for the Tigers last season. He immediately caught a 17-yard first down on the Tigers’ first possession of the year at UCLA. When the season ended, Bech was the Tigers’ leader in receptions with 43. Many of those catches were of the highlight variety. Obviously, his leadership is expected to grow even more this season, as he just represented LSU at SEC Media Days as a sophomore.

On the defensive side of the ball, junior defensive end BJ Ojulari will be called upon for plenty of leadership as well. Ojulari also represented LSU at SEC Media Days. Last season, he certainly made his share of plays, recording seven quarterback sacks and 11.5 tackles for loss. He’s seen his head coach get fired and the entire defensive staff likewise wiped out. But Ojulari has kept it classy and places the blame on himself, saying improvements must come in 2022.

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