Brian Kelly acknowledges high bar set by Kim Mulkey, Jay Johnson at LSU

Brian Kelly knows there are national title expectations at LSU and he knew it from the moment he stepped foot on campus prior to 2022.

After watching Kim Mulkey lead the women’s basketball team to a national title and Jay Johnson’s success on the baseball diamond, Year 2 could be big for Kelly. Kelly led the Tigers to the SEC Championship Game, but lost to eventual national champion Georgia.

With a good cast back, Kelly mentioned what the other coaches around the school did to inspire his football team.

“She’s amazing and she set a high bar,” Kelly said of Mulkey on Sirius XM SEC Radio. “(Kim) won the national championship and I’m like ‘okay here we go. We gotta strap it on.’ Jay’s done extremely well and again that’s the bar at LSU and it should be. That’s why it’s exciting to be part of it.”

It only took Mulkey until her second season to get the women’s basketball team to the top of the mountain. The former Baylor head coach won a national title with a second school.

Johnson’s baseball squad is certainly in the mix as well.

Brian Kelly reveals confidence in offensive line in 2023

If there’s one part of the team that can get LSU going it’s the offensive line, according to Kelly.

Last year, Kelly’s first at the helm in Baton Rouge, LSU started a pair of freshmen tackles and were often shuffling guys around the interior. Kelly quipped that it was “pick five guys” to go block. Now, though, there’s a clearer picture of who is playing and where.

“They were all over the place. Now there’s a lot more of a comfort level in terms of where they’re going to play,” Kelly said in an interview with WBRZ.

In particular, Kelly is bullish because LSU returns two stout tackles who got to prove themselves as true freshmen a year ago: Emery Jones and Will Campbell.

Kelly lauded the pair for stepping in right away and playing, despite the challenges. And it’s all paid off as the Tigers have experienced tackle play for the foreseeable future.

“Well I think you gotta start with the two tackles, the two freshmen tackles. Both from the state of Louisiana, Campbell and Jones. We threw them into the fire last year and knew were going to have to take our lumps a little bit. And we did. They are, I think, poised to have great seasons,” Kelly said. “Both of them have been outstanding in terms of their work ethic, learning the position.”

Andrew Graham contributed to this report