Tough starts for the LSU Football Team have been a pattern in their last four games. The Tigers’ defense has allowed a touchdown within the first few minutes of play. After reviewing film from those games, Head Coach Brian Kelly has come to the conclusion that the team may need to go into their next game in a new headspace.

“It’s not the bus, it’s not the food, it’s not the bed they sleep in,” Coach Kelly said. “It’s just that they have to come at it with a different mindset because it’s really a lot of mental errors. It’s not physical errors.”

Getting set on the line and in the right state of mind before the ball is snapped has been part of the challenge for this Tiger defense. Many of their SEC opponents’ offenses move quickly, making the tempo of play more difficult to keep up with, which may have factored into the LSU defense making early mistakes.

“They just like to move fast. So, we just get lined up, get the call, and just be prepared to play for the next play,” Defensive Back Colby Richardson said. “I just feel as doing that by itself can help us just a little with a slight edge on defense.”

In Florida, the Bayou Bengals defense allowed a 51-yard passing touchdown within one minute of play. Against Ole Miss, a 6-yard rushing touchdown took nearly a minute and a half. Despite their habit of giving up early points, LSU came back to win three of their last four matchups: Auburn by 4, Florida by 10 and Ole Miss by 25.

“I think we just have to get our guys locked in mentally early on. And it just seems like they play better as they get into the game but we just have to get over that,” Coach Kelly said.

Last week, the purple and gold had a bye: giving them time to establish their mentality before playing No. 6 Alabama. And in Saturday’s battle for the SEC West, the Tigers look to put an end to this string of early touchdowns scored by their opponents.