ATHENS — LSU football is up after one week, Alabama football is down, and it’s really not that complicated.
Brian Kelly was blunt when asked the difference between previous high-profile season-opening losses and the 17-10 win his Bayou Bengals scored at Clemson last Saturday.
“Better players — better players,” Kelly said. “This roster needed to be upgraded, and we went out and we upgraded the roster.
“It takes time to build your program.”
Or, in the case of the Crimson Tide, over time the program and roster can be diminished if “better players” are leaving and not adequately replaced.
Former Alabama quarterback Julian Sayin led Ohio State to a 14-7 win over No. 1 Texas last Saturday as former Alabama safety Caleb Downs helped the Buckeyes lock down preseason Heisman Trophy favorite Arch Manning.
Meanwhile in Ann Arbor, former Alabama running back Justice Haynes rushed for 159 yards and 3 touchdowns as the Wolverines dodged upset-minded New Mexico 34-17.
The Big Ten powerhouses, effectively, bought “better players” in raiding three of the Tide’s previous 5-star prospects after Nick Saban’s departure.
Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer wouldn’t say it, but the Tide has “worse players” than it did before, and that was reflected in a 31-17 loss at Florida State.
“I would say just in terms of the SEC, it’s so talent driven,” Kelly explained, asked what it takes for even the most successful of coaches to come into the SEC and have success.
“You know, you’re not coming into this conference and out-coaching somebody and scheming them up.”
“You need a roster and developing that roster both internally in terms of recruiting and through the portal is that art and science, if you will, to get you to having a team that can compete for an SEC championship.”
LSU had the No.2-ranked transfer portal class, Alabama’s ranked 61st.
One team added better players, the other team lost better players, and the game results indicated as much.
Alabama, which, worth noting still pays Saban $500,000 annually to “advise,” has as much an NIL and transfer portal problem as a coaching problem.
It’s not exclusive to the SEC, and some coaches are willing to be even more vocal about the impact the new model in college football is having on teams.
Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy recently said his program spent “around $7 million” on his team and added, “I think Oregon spent close to $40 (million) last year alone, so that was just one year….. Oregon is paying a lot, a lot of money for their team.”
Oregon plays host to Gundy’s Cowboys at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday and is a 28 1/2-point favorite.
Ducks coach Dan Lanning didn’t dodge the facts, as the ESPN story about the exchange between the two coaches noted.
“If you want to be a top-10 team in college football, you better be invested in winning,” said Lanning, who produced the only undefeated team in the 2024 regular season.
“We spend to win.”
Georgia coach Kirby Smart took a poke at Lanning over that very thing last year, saying he wished he had “some of that NIL money” that Nike founder and noted Ducks’ alum Phil Knight “has been sharing with Dan Lanning.”
Lanning’s quip back likely caught some Georgia fans off guard, as he helped the Bulldogs build a roster that won back-to-back CFP Championships in 2021 and 2022 and produce an NFL-record number of draft picks.
“I think it’s impressive that guys like Kirby have been singing the No. 1 class in the nation without any NIL money this entire time.”
It’s not rocket science: The teams with better players win, and better players cost more money.
Here are this week’s picks:
San Jose St. at Texas -36.5, noon, ABC
Pick: Texas 52, San Jose State 10
Utah State at Texas A&M -31.5, 12:45 p.m., SEC Network
Pick: Texas A&M 45, Utah State 10
ETSU at Tennessee, 3:30 p.m., SEC Network-Plus
Pick: No Line
Kansas at Missouri -6.5, 3:30 p.m., ESPN2
Pick: Missouri 31, Kansas 24
Ole Miss -10 at Kentucky, 3:30 p.m., ABC
Pick: Ole Miss 34, Kentucky 21
Austin Peay at Georgia , 3:30 p.m., SEC Network-Plus
Pick: No Line
USF at Florida -17.5, 4:15 p.m., SEC Network
Pick: Florida 37, USF 17
Arkansas State at Arkansas -23.5, 5 p.m., SEC Network-Plus
Pick: Arkansas 42, Arkansas State 21
SC State at South Carolina, 7 p.m., SEC Network-Plus
Pick: No line
Arizona State -6.5 at Mississippi State, 7:30 p.m. ESPN2
Pick: Mississippi State 27, Arizona State 24
Louisiana Tech at LSU -37.5, 7:30 p.m., ESPN-Plus
Pick: LSU 47, Louisiana Tech 7
Vanderbilt at Virginia Tech -1.5, 7:30 p.m., ACC Network
Pick: Virginia Tech 24, Vanderbilt 21
Ball State at Auburn -43.5, 7:30 p.m., ESPNU
Auburn 49, Ball State 3
Michigan at Oklahoma -4.5, 7:30 p.m., ABC
Oklahoma 20, Michigan 14
ULM at Alabama -36.5, 7:45 p.m., SEC Network
Alabama 52, ULM 13
Last Week’s Picks
12-3 straight-up, 6-9 vs. spread
