GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Brian Kelly has kept an offensive play sheet in his back pocket during every game this season, but he looked at it far more often during No. 22 LSU's 27-16 loss to Florida as the offense continued to struggle.
Though LSU ran 92 plays and held the ball for 42 minutes Saturday, it only scored one touchdown. Kelly said he has recently been "more involved in everything that we're doing" as the Tigers try to fix their offense. They scored 29 points over the past two games.
"I think when things don't go well, the head coach has got to be involved," Kelly said. "It's not to say that I don't have full faith and trust in my staff. I do. But the buck stops with me."
Kelly called plays for most of his career before he stopped during his tenure at Notre Dame. Though he helps determine the offensive approach, he has not called plays during his three seasons at LSU.
"When we lose a game, I have to be able to look at the reasons why and quite frankly, I feel as though in my background and how I was developed as a coach, I feel like it's get involved," Kelly said.
After having the top offense in the country last season, LSU has regressed under first-year offensive coordinator Joe Sloan. Sloan, the Tigers' quarterback coach the past two seasons, replaced Mike Denbrock after he left for the same job at Notre Dame. Sloan had previously called plays at Louisiana Tech.
LSU started the year 6-1, but it has scored 35 points over the past 10 quarters. The Tigers have now lost three straight games for the first time under Kelly. They only scored two touchdowns in the past two games as they struggled to finish drives.
"You can't sit and say well, 'It's the coordinators,'" Kelly said. "The head coach is ultimately responsible for the success of his football team. And we're not successful these last three weeks."
After having issues with turnovers and running the ball the past two games, LSU was inefficient in the loss to Florida, averaging 4.2 yards per play. Though the Tigers rushed for 169 yards when adjusted for sacks, they often fell behind the chains because of negative plays. LSU allowed a season-high seven sacks and 11 tackles for loss.
LSU often faced third down as a result, and it went 13 of 24. Redshirt junior quarterback Garrett Nussmeier managed to keep some drives alive by going 12 of 15 for 151 yards and one touchdown on third down. But LSU often settled for field goals. Damian Ramos made three of his four field goal attempts.
"You find ways to make things simpler," Kelly said. "Less offense is more. That's why we got into more of a running game mindset, and we'll continue to do that because we have to be able to eliminate the negative plays and convert when we get opportunities in these short fields."
LSU entered the game ranked 73rd in the country in red zone touchdown percentage (61.5%), and it had to kick a field goal the one time it reached the red zone against Florida.
Nussmeier threw a touchdown on third and 9, but senior receiver Kyren Lacy was flagged for offensive pass interference on a rub route, negating the score. Kelly called it a "silly mistake."
"The prolific offenses, players make plays in short fields," Kelly said. "You just make plays. We haven't made enough plays down there, quite frankly. We have to look at it as coaches. Are we getting the guys to the places where they need to be to make those plays?"
LSU dominated time of possession and the number of plays. It outgained Florida while picking up almost twice as many first downs. It reached Florida territory on six of its 10 drives.
All of those things usually lead to wins. Instead, the offense fizzled for the third straight game, and now LSU is mired in a losing streak with two games left in the regular season.
"That's why I have to be more involved in what's going on," Kelly said. "I have to be able to figure out how we can help our players get through this. This is a rough spot for them. We've got to help them, and as coaches, that's what I have to do."