That was ugly.
LSU lost to Kentucky 35-34 on Saturday, dropping the team to 4-2 on the season.
Let’s get to it.
Here’s our 5 takes.
5 TAKES AS LSU LOSES TO KENTUCKY
TAKE ONE: GO FOR THE WIN – Lane Kiffin is not being paid a zillion dollars a year to punt the ball on fourth and 1. You have the ball. You have control of the game. You NEED ONE YARD. Go for the win. Be the riverboat gambler that got you this job. Nah, you punt and play prevent and lose. That was ugly and that was on Lane Kiffin. You got this job being the renegade risk taker. If we wanted to punt on fourth and 1 and/or have 10 guys on the field on 4th and 1, we could have saved money and kept Brian Kelly.
TAKE TWO: Sam Leavitt needs to get his act together – I don’t give a damn if you won or lost this game when looking at the big picture. Sam Leavitt has to value and protect the football. This isn’t the pansy ass Pac 12. This is the SEC. You have to value and protect the football here. Both turnovers tonight were unacceptable and both erase what was otherwise a great game. It’s not about having the highest ceiling here. It’s about having the highest floor. Clean up the turnovers and you win.
TAKE THREE: Defensive adjustments, but then same ole Baker – Kentucky was running the ball and doing whatever it wanted on Saturday for the first 30 minutes of the game. In the final 30, Blake Baker made adjustments and shut that down cold. But when the chips were on the table, the QB run burned Blake again. It always does. How could you not expect that play call in that spot? Kid walked into the end zone. No spy. No nothing.
TAKE FOUR: Jackson Harris is WR1 – Jackson Harris is the LSU WR1. We have been asking for someone to step up take that role. He did. And heck, he’s not a bad passer, too. That dime on the touchdown pass in the second half was arguably the best play of the night. He was a bright spot on a dark night.
TAKE FIVE: Officiating was atrocious – Look, I don’t want to speculate or play conspiracy. But given the pending lawsuits and given the way Louisiana lawyers tore Greg Sankey a new rear in courtroom and exposed him for the inept coward that he is, it’s hard to look at some of the calls in this game and wonder about an agenda. That punt return had at least 3 obvious blocks in the back. There were at least 3 plays called against LSU that even the rules official said were nowhere near a foul. Kentucky had a blatant false start before their timeout in OT. I hate to be that guy, but come on.
TAKE SIX: Special teams a wreck – Since the Brian Kelly era, the LSU special teams have been a wreck. You have to get the ball carrier on the ground on that play. I can complain about the blocks in the back until the cows come home, but you have to get the ball carrier on the ground. The whole game is different if you don’t let up that explosive.
TAKE SEVEN: Atrocious late-game defense – You just have to be better situationally. I never for one second thought LSU was getting a stop late – on the last drive or overtime. This team isn’t there yet. And it’s bigger than not having Whit Weeks. Spare me on that one.