re: Never been this unhappy after a win

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The road struggles have been well covered here. Clearly LSU has the physical tools to be competitive... they just don't seem to have their heads in quite the right place / don't seem quite comfortable when they travel. Makes me wonder if they have a solid game day routine to get everyone focused. Sometimes it's the little things like that that help get everyone in sync and ready to go. Players in many sports, from basketball, to football, boxing, etc. have pregame rituals that help them mentally prepare.

While many have written the season off, there's still a couple of games left and the SEC tournament... if I was Johnny Jones, I'd see if there's a sports psychologist on staff to lend some insight in game day rituals or teach the kids to relax (and/or focus) on the road

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Very interesting post.
I have thought about using a sports psychologist too. Mainly related to making free throws, which coaches maintain is psychological. But it easily could be applied to the road game situation.

Our freshmen starters have a big impact on our game, but may well feel out of their depth and uncomfortable on the road - especially in front of raucous, hostile crowds? A bit of performance anxiety?
All the traveling itself (especially flying - I bet some of those kids had never flown before LSU). Also having to do school work when on the road, might affect the freshmen and others too. Extra pressure.
Not to give them excuses, but that might be the reality.

I know CJJ is a self-confessed none rah-rah type. I read a quote from him in the paper recently where he said just that. He said he was always self-motivated as a player and didn't need the rah-rah, and he didn't coach that way, expecting the kids to be self-motivated. That might be a mistaken attitude with these particular players. It's a matter of personality. Just wondering.

I've been to road games, but don't know their routines. I do know that they all get together for a 5-10 minute meeting before boarding the bus to the arena, and leave for the arena and hour and 15 minutes before the game time.

Some of the players listen to certain favorite music before and on the way to the game. That would be considered a ritual I guess. But that's an individual activity, I wonder if they do something together?

Again, thoughtful post that brings up a very good point.

Lets be homest, a&m shot terribly

andre had a great game last night

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Midget guards is not a recipe for success, and the defense this year has been horrible.

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I love it, that was perfect.

There are a lot of good points in this thread. One thing that no one has mentioned is the fact that LSU's best SEC games this year, games where they showed a ton of passion and heart, have been UK, Ark. (home) and @ UK. What do those three gmaes have in common? A great game enviornment. The PMAC was rocking (relatively speaking) for the UK and Ark. games, and there is always passion in Rupp Arena. While it shouldn't be the case if you are a competitor, it's no conincidence that the energy in the building brought energy to the players. That's the biggest reason why I tought going into the game that last Saturday would be a fight, and why Florida will get a great effort from LSU. The rest of the SEC venues are pretty lackluster in terms of fan support. That inculdes the PMAC. LSU's energy level matches that of the crowd (home and away) many nights.

I don't personally know any of the guys on the team, but it seems to me that while they're all good guys, they're are also fairly quiet guys. That includes CJJ. Sometimes a team needs that guy who is the emotional leader. Sometimes its the HC (like Tom Izzo). Sometimes its one or two players. But you need that guy to provide the spark night in and night out. Especially when the game atmosphere is well.....pretty boring.

The season has been a roller coaster ride.

That is all.

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Do you even Rant, bro?

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What do you mean?

I've been asking him about the black uniforms I think there dope. When was the last time they wore the Gold?