In 2022, LSU did something unexpected in Brian Kelly’s first year as head coach. When Alabama football visited Baton Rouge, the Tigers pulled off the upset, winning in overtime on a two-point conversion, prompting a field rush by LSU fans.

Both teams have open dates this weekend following wins, Alabama’s over Tennessee, LSU’s over Army. But when they return to action, it will be for a rematch, this time in Tuscaloosa.

On Wednesday, Kelly was asked what the win last year meant to the program he is trying to build.

“It’s like an ancient memory,” Kelly said on the SEC coaches teleconference. “I mean, It’s what you’ve done lately. It helps build your recruiting, it helps build the momentum in your program. We’ve got some work to do, clearly still in recruiting, but it helped in the recruiting process.”

LSU went on to win the SEC West last season, before falling to Georgia in the conference championship game. This year, the Tigers were expected to once again be a major player in the SEC, and possibly for a national title.

While Kelly’s squad is certainly still alive in the west, the Tigers already have two losses, both in the season-opener against Florida State, and to Ole Miss. According to Kelly, it’s time to learn some lessons from what Saban has build in Tuscaloosa, plus Kirby Smart’s Georgia team.

“Those are definitely steps in the right direction, but as I said, for us to get into the ranks of Georgia and Alabama, you gotta be able to do this thing consistently,” Kelly said. “So for us, it’s about consistent performance and we haven’t been as consistent yet. That’s what we’ll be looking to model after the Georgias and Alabamas is consistency in performance.”

Alabama and LSU are scheduled to face off Nov. 4 at Bryant-Denny Stadium. The game is scheduled to kick off at 6:45 p.m. and will be aired on CBS.