2021 version of LSU Football is far removed from 2020 version of Tigers

LSU football went through plenty of struggles in 2020.

The Tigers got off to a 1-2 start last season after surprising losses to Mississippi State and Missouri.

LSU’s defense simply wasn’t up to par last season. Bo Pelini didn’t work out as the Tigers’ defensive coordinator. Plus the program lost a lot of talent to the 2020 NFL Draft.

On top of the loss of talent, the vibe was just…..off.

The staff didn’t seem to gel. Then there were the COVID-19 issues that prevented a new scheme/depth chart from gelling.

Fortunately for LSU, that’s all in the past. The 2021 version of LSU is vastly different than the 2020 version of the Tigers.

Ed Orgeron explains why LSU football is in a different place in 2021

On Saturday, after LSU’s first fall scrimmage, Tigers head coach Ed Orgeron spoke to reporters and he explained how the 2021 version of LSU is in a much different place than the 2020 version of the Tigers.

Here’s what Orgeron had to say (via 247Sports):

"Totally different. Sense of normalcy. Leadership. Eighteen of 22 starters coming back. Guys came back, they made a decision to come back. We’ve got a great freshman class. Great class. Coaches that are hungry. I think it’s completely different than the atmosphere last year. There’s a lot of outside influences that cause negativity and there’s some stuff that we couldn’t control. I think none of that stuff has happened now. COVID seems to be for us, we still have our standards, which we need to follow, but it’s not that we’re thinking are we going to play, not going to play. We’re feeling like we’re going to play. We’re feeling like the stands are going to be full so we’re excited about that.”"

This is obviously great to hear. The Tigers never seemed to gel last season — at least not until the final two weeks of the season.

So far, during spring camp and fall camp, it seems like the environment at LSU is where Coach O wants it to be.

This is really what makes Orgeron such a great head coach. He’s essentially the CEO of LSU’s football program. Coach O isn’t just responsible for the X’s and O’s — he’s responsible for making sure everyone works well together. And he recognized last season that something wasn’t quite right.

Orgeron responded by making massive coaching staff changes. He hired several new assistants, including a new defensive coordinator and offensive coordinator.

Those coaching staff changes certainly appear to be paying off.

It sounds like a championship atmosphere has returned to Baton Rouge.