LSU Football: 3 reasons the Tigers will struggle in 2020

1. Schedule features several landmines, tough road trips

The Tigers’ 2020 slate would be a navigable one for an elite college football team, but with all of the aforementioned turnover in Baton Rouge, the schedule has too many tough spots.

It starts in Week 2, when LSU hosts Texas. The Longhorns will be looking to return the favor after the Tigers went into Austin a season ago and came out victorious. On the arm, and legs, of Sam Ehlinger, Texas is going to be a tough out in 2020.

There’s also a slew of conference matchups that will likely prove to be the undoing of LSU’s title defense. The first of those being an October 10th road trip to the Swamp. Florida has won at least ten games in each of the last two seasons, and Dan Mullen‘s squad has a strong shot at getting to Atlanta for an SEC Championship Game appearance.

The month of November is where things could really go sour for LSU. Alabama comes to town to open the month. The Tide face some turnover of their own as well, but they get the benefit of the doubt that LSU hasn’t earned. Nick Saban has kept his program at an elite level through countless coordinator changes and player departures in the last decade-plus. The Tigers’ 2019 season was special, but Ed Orgeron hasn’t proven he can win consistently at a high level yet.

LSU will finish November with trips to Auburn and Texas A&M, in what is the most difficult two-week stretch of the year for the Tigers. Jordan-Hare Stadium and Kyle Field are two of the nation’s toughest environments to play in, and these two teams are poised to make big leaps in 2020.

With so much turnover and inexperience in key spots, the Tigers are bound to get caught in a few of those tough matchups on the schedule. Orgeron is recruiting well, and the 2021 season may see a return to success, but 2020 is going to see an LSU program that has far too much transition to deal with.