profwilson

quote:

---

The team sucks. Everybody knows it.

---

This may turn out to be true, but certainly not "everybody" knows it. Multiple ESPN college basketball analysts (including Jay Bilas), for example, have LSU as an NCAA tournament bubble team. Now, these same guys have 10-13 SEC teams in the tourney, so that assessment is not inconsistent with LSU ending up in the bottom third of the league. Given how grueling the SEC gauntlet will be, it is imperative that the Tigers rack up wins in the non-conference. The neutral-site and road games between November 28th and December 13th (Texas Tech, Georgia Tech, SMU, etc.) are especially important. If they can go into conference play at 11-2 or better, they have a reasonable chance to make the Tournament. If they don't, I think everyone would agree that it's time to go in another direction from a coaching standpoint.

quote:

---

watching the same exact football game the last 4 years

---

Really? You think the games this year look like "the same exact football game" as when Jayden Daniels was here, we had no defense, and were winning or losing 51-45? I swear, I think that some people who post on here live in an alternate football universe.

Now, to be clear, I don't think Kelly is above criticism. But to say that it's just "the same old thing" every year is just flat wrong. In fact, what is amazing is how we seem to have found a radically different formula for being good-but-not-great every year. I do think the expectation this year should be a playoff berth. It's still in play--we'll see if we get there.

quote:

---

FPI is a power ranking on who would be favored on a neutral field

---

Yeah, except that it's not even that. Ole Miss is a 1-point favorite at home against LSU. This means that Vegas would favor LSU on a neutral field, even though the Tigers are 11 spots lower in FPI. At the end of 2019, AFTER the playoffs in which LSU had obliterated everyone in their path and completed arguably the best season in college football history, FPI still had LSU 3rd. That tells you a lot. But, to be clear, it doesn't reflect "ESPN bias," as there is no human judgment in it. It's just a flawed formula.

USC is currently #25 in the AP poll and unranked in the coaches' poll, so they are marginal. Navy and NC State are the only other teams on their schedule even receiving votes, and they don't play a conference championship game. So yes, they could quite possibly "sort out their defense" as the season goes on, but how will we really know?

Notre Dame should be out of the conversation at this point. They have lost both of the games on their schedule against teams that will be ranked (though I suppose USC MIGHT end up as a ranked opponent), and they have no conference championship game. What could they possibly do against Purdue, Syracuse, Stanford, Pittsburgh, etc. to prove that they belong in the playoff? How could you let them in over, let's say, a 9-3 Texas A&M team?

quote:

---

Miami will win by 30-35 points

---

If you really believe this and are right, you should be able to make a fortune on an alternate line bet. Miami is only a touchdown favorite (7.5) at the open.

quote:

---

I heard he was hard to block in the spring and fall

---

Well, everyone is apparently hard to block for our offensive line, so I wouldn't read too much into that...

Yeah, this dude needs to pump the breaks. The SEC is just fine as it is, and is not "falling behind" the Big 10. Yes, Ohio State is very good at football--they are the defending national champions, and just beat Texas (at home, by one score, in a game in which they were significantly outgained). But the SEC has ten (!) teams currently in the top 25, compared to six for the Big 10. They are also favored in both of the remaining matchups between the conferences (Oklahoma-Michigan and Alabama-Wisconsin), though of course we'll have to see how those play out. So "OMG, we'd better grab Clemson and FSU before the Big 10 leaves us in the dust!" seems like a pretty dubious take.

quote:

---

Who wouldn't want to watch Bama go 0-2? LSU gonna be a blowout.

---

Yeah, there's no chance this happens. Bama looked sloppy and soft against Florida State, but ULM is not in the same universe as the Tide talent-wise. Plus Alabama will be salty and embarrassed after last week's debacle. I think they beat ULM by 40+.

That said, I don't expect the LSU-Louisiana Tech game to be close, either. Not a lot of great matchups to choose from in the SEC this weekend.

quote:

---

remember Snake Laval when Skip retired

---

Clearly you don't. His name was SMOKE Laval. But, in fairness, he was pretty forgettable...

If the ACC gets a second team in, it's not going to be Louisville. Miami and SMU are both better than they are. Also, Kansas State is already 0-1 in the Big 12. And I'd be REALLY surprised if USC made the playoff.

All in all, about the quality of a set of predictions I would expect from Danny Kanell.

quote:

---

The X-factor will be whose offensive line can create some holes for the run game.

---

If this is true, then I don't love our chances...

Peter Dyakowski (his mullet while at LSU achieved near-legendary status)

quote:

---

What about a small fan

---

I think they’ll let you bring in water no matter what size you are…

:-)

quote:

---

NIL and the portal has watered everything down and diluted the game

---

When it comes to college baseball, I think it's just the opposite. The availability of NIL has allowed guys who would have been playing minor league baseball ten years ago to play college instead. Without NIL, it is very unlikely that guys like Dylan Crews and Paul Skenes would have been playing at the college level in 2023.