Greg McElroy addresses biggest hurdle, advantage to LSU coaching change

On3 imageby:Chandler Vessels08/08/22

ChandlerVessels

Greg McElroy understands on some level how LSU football players might be feeling after undergoing a coaching change this offseason. A former Alabama quarterback, McElroy was a redshirt freshman during Nick Saban’s first year with the Crimson Tide in 2007.

Having played just one season under Mike Shula, McElroy had to get used to the fact that the rest of his college career — if he chose to stay at Alabama — would come under someone else. He talked about his mindset going through that experience in a recent episode of Always College Football.

“I remember vividly the first thing we felt was a sense of responsibility that the last coach was gone,” McElroy said. “None of us looked around and said, ‘Well, Mike Shula led us down this wrong path and that’s why he have this change.’ A lot of us looked at it and said, ‘They guy that recruited us and sat in our living room, he’s gone now because of what we did. We didn’t play well enough. We didn’t execute well enough. So we better not let this next guy down because that would really, really be a poor reflection of what we are as a team and what our program’s like.’

“So I remember there being collective buy-in in Year 1 that was pretty dang good for a while. Then as soon as the going got tough and we started to find some adversity, there were some people that started pulling in different directions.”

As Greg McElroy looks at the situation at LSU with Brian Kelly getting ready to take over, he sees no reason they can’t find success right away. Kelly brings a proven track record and the Tigers have talented players already such as receiver Kayshon Boutte, a projected first round pick.

Still, there are some things they need to sort out to reach that potential. However, he does think they will benefit from a clean slate much like Alabama did.

“I really believe this LSU team is not that far away,” McElroy said. “Do they have some things to iron out? Yes. They’ve got to figure out who their quarterback’s gonna be. They gotta figure out their back end rotation defensively. They’ve gotta figure out beyond Boutte at wide receiver who else is gonna be in the mix there. Can they get things going on the offensive line? Can they be better running the football? This is an LSU team that looked unrecognizable the last few years when they tried to establish the line of scrimmage offensively. So there’s a lot they need to iron out.

“But I remember, when you get a new coach, everything is wiped clean. That might be a good thing if you’re a player that underachieved and it might be a bad thing if you’re a player that overachieved because none of your previous good play is gonna be acknowledged by the coaching staff. Everybody getting a clean slate means that everybody now is starting at the same spot. Now, they started to establish some of the pecking order in the spring and probably evolved a little bit over the summer, but now in fall camp there’s no more messing around. Sense of urgency is at an all-time high knowing that Week 1 you’re playing Florida State and that’s a pretty dang good opponent. I think this is a great opportunity for young players. You get an excellent coach where there will be no stone left unturned.”

Ultimately, Greg McElroy believes how successful LSU can be in 2022 comes down to how the players respond to Kelly’s coaching. If enough of the team buys in, however, he could see them coming away with a few surprise victories this year.

“Brian Kelly prides himself on the details and if you don’t take care of business every day at practice, you will not play,” McElroy said. “The level of accountability I think has ramped up significantly for LSU this year. That’s no disrespect to the previous staff, it’s just things went a little sideways after the 2019 championship run. So I think it’s a great thing for LSU.

“This is a team with a lot of talent. Do not deny yourself. LSU can play and beat anybody in college football this year. But, they can also lose to teams they shouldn’t lose to. That’s been the problem for LSU the last couple of years and I think with Brian Kelly, that’s gonna be the biggest thing for Year 1. Don’t lose the games you’re supposed to win. If he does that, they should have a pretty dang good season.”