This 2022 team will not only be preparing for the distractions that come with playing an SEC team on the road but also for the uncontrollable part to outdoor sporting events in the south. Kelly is getting the full Louisiana treatment in year one with having to prepare his team for potential weather conditions this week. It’s that time of year when football at LSU seemingly keeps one eye on a possible storm.
As Hurricane Ian threatens to impact a large portion of Florida, there’s a good chance LSU and Auburn could also be feeling the impacts, albeit not to the severe level of being right in the storm’s trajectory. As a result, Kelly said the purple and gold are preparing for all situations.
“We’ve talked about a game plan in terms of what it might look like,” Kelly said. “We’re going to probably get some rain of some kind, and that will be our first time in that element. It’s a grass situation, so you put those plans together relative to what that would look like if we did get hit with some severe rain.”
While this is an added layer of preparation for LSU, Kelly says it’s something he doesn’t want to put on the players. LSU will likely have to do some kind of drill work with a wet ball to best simulate the possible weather conditions it faces this weekend.
Naturally, in games with heavy rain expected, there’s an added reliability on the run game. LSU is coming off a performance against New Mexico that saw all four running backs get involved and succeed. A mobile quarterback like Jayden Daniels and a consistent rotation of Noah Cain, Josh Williams, John Emery, and Armoni Goodwin is also key. It’s important to note that Goodwin has been labeled daily with an injury this week, so his practice time could be a bit limited.
But more than anything, Kelly says it’s the coaching staff who will have to make the in-game adjustments on Saturday if those conditions affect the game plan.
“Kicking game is affected dramatically. Field position, tactically how you call a game. You just have to have wrap your head around it prior to and prepare for it and then, quite frankly, you have to react accordingly during the game,” Kelly said.
It’s a situation LSU must prepare for but at the same time not let it dictate the gameplan completely.
