Blake Baker has set a fiery standard for the LSU Defense in 2024

Over the past few seasons, we've seen the dominant defensive standard on the LSU Football team slip. The Tigers have gotten decimated defensively the past few seasons which made an incredible offense in 2023 worthless as the Tigers had to score 40 to stay in games. The defensive struggles saw Brian Kelly clean house firing defensive coordinator Matt House and replacing the defensive assitants.

Now Blake Baker comes from Missouri to lead the defense for his second stint in Baton Rouge after he coached the linebackers in 2021. Baker returns with eight seasons of experience after his latest stint as Missouri's defensive coordinator. Baker helped build a great defense at Missouri where the Tigers ranked fourth in scoring defense and fifth in both rushing and total defense in the SEC.

Coming back to LSU, it's clear that Blake Baker needs to restore the defensive standard of past LSU teams where it felt that the players were angry any time they let up a yard. Blake Baker spoke after Saturday's practice where he gave a quote that should have every LSU fan ready to run through a wall.

"If a guy gets beat deep and puts his palms up, that's a poodle. If we turn down a hit that's a poodle. We don't want poodles."

- Blake Baker

This is the exact motto that this LSU Football team needs to have heading into this season. Nearly everyone is pitting the LSU Football team as a non-factor as they list teams like Texas, Georgia, Alabama, and Ole Miss as the playoff contenders in the SEC.

The LSU Defense should take this personally

The LSU Football team lost three first round picks all on the offensive side of the football after last season. You wouldn't know this if you looked at what experts' biggest questions are with this team as everyone still wonders if the defense can pull its own weight. The only position going under a ton of change is defensive tackle meaning this defense is made up of a ton of the same pieces as 2023. We'll get to see how well this new staff did in development but, with Baker at the helm its easy to see positive change is coming.

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