Brian Kelly calls for more energy on offense after sluggish first half vs Arkansas

On a cold day in Fayetteville, the LSU and Arkansas offenses had a hard time getting warmed up. Heading into halftime, both teams combined for 53 passing yards — and Brian Kelly wasn’t happy with his offense.

Tigers quarterback Jayden Daniels completed four of seven passes for just 38 yards in the air and an interception. Still, LSU took a 6-3 lead into halftime, but Kelly said he wants to see more out of the break.

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“Energy’s not very good on offense,” Kelly told ESPN’s Katie George. “I think defensively, we’re doing a nice job of taking the ball away. You know, mistakes — we’ve got to do a better job. We’ve got to get in here, have a conversation about how we come out in the second half. We have to play much better on the offensive side of the ball.”

The LSU run game did work in the first two quarters, totaling 104 yards on the ground, led by 49 yards from Josh Williams. Neither team found the end zone, though, with three field goals combined prior to halftime.

LSU is looking to build off last week’s massive win over Alabama in Death Valley, a 32-31 overtime victory. That win moved the Tigers up to No. 7 in the updated College Football Playoff rankings, and they can clinch a spot in the SEC Championship with a victory over Arkansas on Saturday.

The Razorbacks are going without quarterback KJ Jefferson today as he deals with a shoulder injury. That means Malik Hornsby got the start under center and did more work with his legs than his arm. He rushed for 40 yards in the first half while throwing for just 15 yards on 2-of-6 passing in his seventh appearance of the year.