Will LSU football make the 2023 College Football Playoff? Our game-by-game predictions

BATON ROUGE — In less than two weeks, LSU football will begin its second season under coach Brian Kelly.

The Tigers surprised many last season with a 10-4 record, a win over Alabama and an SEC West title. But what will Year 2 look like under Kelly with much higher expectations surrounding the Tigers?

Here are our game-by-game predictions for LSU in 2023.

Sept. 3 vs. Florida State (neutral site in Orlando)

Last season: Florida State won, 24-23

The buzz: Florida State brings back quarterback Jordan Travis and edge rusher Jared Verse while adding a plethora of quality transfers, including Keon Coleman, Jaheim Bell and Fentrell Cypress II. The Seminoles have the potential to make the College Football Playoff, but LSU will squeak by and exact its revenge after last year's fiasco in New Orleans, even without Maason Smith.

The pick: LSU wins, 38-35

Sept. 9 vs. Grambling State

Last season: Did not play. Grambling went 3-8

The buzz: The last time Grambling State faced a Power 5 opponent (Houston in 2021), it lost 45-0. Anything but a lopsided victory for LSU in this game would be a major surprise.

The pick: LSU wins, 42-14

Sept. 16 at Mississippi State

Last season: LSU won, 31-16

The buzz: Returning Mississippi State quarterback Will Rogers could be a mismatch for LSU's wobbly secondary. However, that shouldn't be enough to overcome the clear talent disparity between these two programs, which was even on display last year when the Tigers were a worse team than they are now.

The pick: LSU wins, 38-24

Sept. 23 vs. Arkansas

Last season: LSU won, 13-10

The buzz: Outside of quarterback, Arkansas has plenty of questions to answer on offense, and that's even before mentioning how much the Razorbacks' defense has to improve from last year's subpar showing.

The pick: LSU wins, 42-28

Sept. 30 at Ole Miss

Last season: LSU won, 45-20

The buzz: Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin did a good job this offseason of filling any remaining holes on his roster with quality players from the transfer portal. But Kiffin also did that last season and the Rebels still lost to LSU by more than two touchdowns.

The pick: LSU wins, 38-27

Oct. 7 at Missouri

Last season: Did not play. Missouri went 6-7

The buzz: Missouri has an underrated roster with the likes of Luther Burden, Ty'Ron Hopper and Javon Foster leading the charge. But its gaping hole at quarterback will make the task of taking down LSU nearly impossible.

The pick: LSU wins, 31-17

Oct. 14 vs. Auburn

Last season: LSU won, 21-17

The buzz: Auburn vs. LSU is often a wildly entertaining matchup, no matter the state of either roster. Auburn has improved from last season, but it's hard to see how Michigan State transfer quarterback Payton Thorne walks into Tiger Stadium and takes down LSU.

The pick: LSU wins, 35-24

Oct. 21 vs. Army

Last season: Did not play. Army went 6-6

The buzz: The timing of this game coming in late October after a string of SEC matchups for LSU is strange. That shouldn't affect the final outcome, as Army lost by 35 points the last time it faced a ranked Power 5 opponent.

The pick: LSU wins, 42-17

Nov. 4 at Alabama

Last season: LSU won, 32-31 OT

The buzz: Alabama is in prime position to get revenge from last year's upset loss in Tiger Stadium. The Crimson Tide will be at home and with a chip on their shoulder, almost always a deadly combination for coach Nick Saban's foes. However, Alabama has a lot of questions on offense it needs to answer and LSU has the more balanced roster. Expect the Tigers to pull off another close win over the Crimson Tide.

The pick: LSU wins, 31-28

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Nov. 11 vs. Florida

Last season: LSU won, 45-35

The buzz: Wisconsin transfer quarterback Graham Mertz escaping Tiger Stadium with a victory seems extremely far-fetched. The Gators have a long way to go before they can seriously compete with an elite team such as LSU.

The pick: LSU wins, 42-20

Nov. 18 vs. Georgia State

Last season: Did not play. Georgia State went 4-8.

The buzz: The Panthers haven't taken down an SEC team since Tennessee in 2019. Don't expect that streak to change against LSU this season.

The pick: LSU wins, 52-17

Nov. 25 vs. Texas A&M

Last season: Texas A&M won, 38-23

The buzz: LSU's upset loss to the Aggies last season was driven by fatigue and a lack of roster depth on the Tigers' part. Texas A&M should be a better team this season, but Kelly losing at home to coach Jimbo Fisher with a deeper roster this time around seems far-fetched.

The pick: LSU wins, 31-24

Dec. 2 vs. Georgia (SEC Championship Game)

Last season: Georgia won, 50-30

The buzz: LSU's improvements this season should make this SEC Championship Game rematch a more competitive game than it was last year. But the Bulldogs still have the best team in college football until proven otherwise.

The pick: Georgia wins, 38-28

Jan. 1 vs. Ohio State (College Football Playoff Semifinal)

Last season: Did not play. Ohio State went 11-2.

The buzz: The Buckeyes have arguably the two best wide receivers in college football in Marvin Harrison Jr. and Emeka Egbuka. That could be disastrous for LSU, which has question marks at cornerback.

The pick: Ohio State wins, 45-35

Final record: 12-2

Koki Riley covers LSU sports for The Daily Advertiser. Email him at kriley@theadvertiser.com and follow him on Twitter at @KokiRiley

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: LSU football game-by-game predictions 2023: Tigers season outlook