How LSU football is still developing into the program it wants to be under Ed Orgeron

LSU football is still becoming the team it wants to be under Ed Orgeron.

LSU football still isn’t where it wants to be under Ed Orgeron.

That feels weird to say a year after the Tigers went 15-0 and won the national championship.

But it’s true.

LSU was tremendous last season. They excelled on the offensive side of the ball. It’s extremely likely that we’ll never again see the Tigers have a season like they had in 2019.

That due to two reasons:

1. Joe Burrow heading to the NFL.
2. LSU rounding into the program Coach O wants it to be.

Still with me?

I promise it’ll make sense.

The team LSU football wants to be

LSU underwent some big changes after beating Clemson to win the national championship in January. Not only did the Tigers lose 14 players to the NFL, but the program also lost passing game coordinator Joe Brady and defensive coordinator Dave Aranda.

Orgeron replaced Brady by hiring former Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Scott Linehan. The thought behind that hire is not to overhaul LSU’s offense (as Brady did last offseason), but to simply build on what the Tigers already have in place.

Replacing Aranda, however, is a different story.

Coach O hired former Nebraska head coach Bo Pelini (who served as Les Miles’ defensive coordinator in Baton Rouge from 2005-07) to replace Aranda.

Pelini, unlike Linehan with the offense, is bringing a new look to the Tigers’ defense. LSU will be moving from a 3-4 defense to a 4-3 defense.

Not only will the base formation change, but the culture is expected to change, too.

Pelini is often described as “intense” and “fiery”. His defenses have a reputation for being “tough”.

And that’s what Orgeron loves about him.

“Just can’t say enough about coach Pelini and what he’s brought,” said Orgeron this week during a media session with reporters (via 247Sports).

“Exactly what we’re looking for. Toughness, very smart coach, knows his defense in and out, knows what he wants out of it. We all learning from him. Our guys are taking to him. He’s an aggressive coach, but he’s a players’ coach and they love him.”

LSU’s offense is still going to operate as it did last season. It might not be as prolific (the Tigers found lightning in a bottle last season), but it will still be effective.

Moving forward, though, LSU is going to be a team known for it’s tough, smothering defense.

Combining that defense with the Tigers’ offense is a scary thought for the rest of the SEC.

Even though LSU’s offense will likely never again be as good as it was last year, it’s still possible that the Tigers are going to be an even better team in the coming years.