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By Jayesh Pagar
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LSU and Texas enter Saturday's matchup with plenty at stake, but former Tigers coach Brian Kelly believes one particular weakness could shape the outcome.
He also sees a clear path for LSU to take advantage at Tiger Stadium.
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Kelly, now a CBS Sports analyst, backed his former team during Tuesday's "Inside College Football" segment. He pointed to Texas' struggles protecting its quarterback as a major concern heading into the road matchup.
"I've always felt that the tenth week of the season, you are who you are," Kelly said. "And I think those things will show with Texas, the inability to protect the quarterback. I worry about that."
Texas has allowed 27 sacks this season, tied for the ninth-most nationally. Kelly believes that is not something the Longhorns can suddenly correct in a single week.
However, he also acknowledged that LSU must address its own problems. The Tigers are coming off a 31-13 loss to Alabama, a game in which their offense struggled to turn opportunities into points.
LSU outgained Alabama 457-285 but went 0-for-4 on fourth-down attempts. The Tigers also scored just one touchdown on four red-zone trips.
Kelly believes those issues are easier to fix than Texas' protection problems.
"For LSU, it's situational offense in particular," he said. "They were 0-for-4 on fourth down, but they were abysmal in the red zone. I think you can fix those things."
Former NFL offensive lineman and CBS analyst Aaron Taylor agreed with Kelly. He identified Texas' inability to establish a consistent rushing attack as another potential problem.
"To play on the road at night in that place, you gotta bring your defense, which they'll do, but you also gotta bring a run game, which they haven't been able to do yet," Taylor said.
Texas is averaging 128 rushing yards per game, ranking 14th among the SEC's 18 teams. Taylor believes that could put additional pressure on quarterback Arch Manning, particularly in a hostile environment like Death Valley.
"When you can't run the football, that is not the world you wanna live in in Death Valley," he added.
Kelly also stressed the importance of the matchup, describing it as a "one hundred percent elimination game."
The stakes are significant. Texas enters at 7-2, while LSU sits at 6-3 after its defeat to Alabama. A loss could severely damage the Tigers' College Football Playoff hopes.
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