No. 10 LSU’s chances of making the College Football Playoff took a dive on Saturday following a 31-24 loss to No. 17 Vanderbilt in front of 35,000 fans at FristBank Stadium in Nashville.
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The Tigers don’t have much room for error during their final five games after losses to then-No. 13 Ole Miss on Sept. 27 and Vandy.
The upcoming schedule is grueling, as LSU will host No. 4 Texas A&M in Week 9, travel to play No. 6 Alabama on Nov. 8 and finish the regular season on the road against No. 14 Oklahoma on Nov. 29.
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LSU entered the season with aspirations of making the CFP. Following a disappointing loss on Saturday, many Tiglers fans are calling for a coaching change in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
During his postgame news conference with the media, Kelly was asked how he could keep the loss to the Commodores from having a multiplying effect. Kelly had a warning for his team, saying they needed to play clean football moving forward to stay in the race for the SEC.
“It’s a competitive group,” Kelly said via 247 Sports. “They’re going to play hard. We just have to play smarter and cleaner. I’m not worried about the guys not wanting to play at their very best. They’re going to play at their very best. They’re still in it. They got Texas A&M at home, then they get a week off.
“Then it’s a four-game race to the SEC championship. It’s a disappointing loss. There’s no doubt it. But they’ve got to bounce back right to reality and know that they’ve got to play mistake-free against their outstanding A&M team.”
LSU didn’t commit any turnovers on Saturday, but was penalized seven times for 52 yards to Vandy’s four penalties for 35 yards.
The matchup against Texas A&M will pretty much be the Tigers season, and serious questions could start to mount inside the administration about Kelly’s tenure with the program if LSU suffers a third loss before playing rival Alabama in November.
For more on the NCAA, head to Newsweek Sports.
