What a strange season it was for LSU in 2015. Through the first seven games, everything was going their way. They even had the Heisman Trophy locked up.

Then the meat of the schedule arrived and injuries struck and the once powerful one-dimensional offense got stuck in neutral. Playoffs went out the window and the Heisman for Leonard Fournette slipped away as well.

A lot of things went wrong in a hurry. Here are five areas that need improving before the Tigers can get back to the top of the SEC West standings:

Quarterback: LSU has got to get more production at quarterback. It’s an old song and it keeps getting older. When healthy, especially against inferior competition, LSU’s running game is enough to win games, a lot of games in fact. But as has been proven time and time again, beginning Jan. 9, 2012, a game Tigers fans may never forget, LSU’s one-dimension offense isn’t going to win championships. There has to be more production at that key position, either from Brandon Harris or whoever his replacement is going to be. Finishing 12th in the SEC in passing – LSU threw for only 2,165 yards; leader Ole Miss had 4,351, more than double –  isn’t going to get it done.

Coaching: The aforementioned style of offense is good for eight or nine wins a season. But in the SEC, and in particular the SEC West, the bar has been raised and two- or three-loss seasons won’t win titles. Solid defense coupled with a strong running game used to win championships. They simply don’t anymore. You have to have more. Even with Alabama’s top SEC defense, 45 points were still necessary to win the national championship  game Monday night. That’s just the world we live in. Alabama head coach Nick Saban has adapted. Bringing in OC Lane Kiffin was genius. Les Miles must also adapt.

Pass defense: Eighth in the SEC in pass defense, the Tigers must improve in this area if they hope to contend in a league that is beginning to shift away from its smash-mouth style into a more passing-efficient conference. There was young talent in the Tigers’ secondary last season, and they made youthful mistakes. Those youngsters must take charge this season because senior S Jalen Mills will move on and another underclassman, junior Tre’Davious White still hasn’t made a decision whether to stay for his senior year or declare for the NFL draft. Should White stay for his senior year, and it appears he is leaning in that direction, the Tigers’ pass defense could actually become a strength of the team in 2016 with a year of experience and playing under fire in the SEC.

Special teams: For whatever reason, LSU struggled on kick coverage this season. Different kickers were used and none could reach the end zone with any consistency. Some claim this was by design, but the poor coverage on those short kickoffs suggests otherwise. It’s an area that must be cleaned up, and given LSU’s history of playing well on kick coverage, this season should be considered an anomaly until proven otherwise.

Depth: This sounds strange to say given the quality of recruiting classes that Miles pulls in year after year, but injuries are always going to pop up. The drop-off in personnel at key positions was glaring this season as injuries brought LSU’s vaunted running game to a screeching halt. There’s really no excuse not to be two- or three-deep in areas that are critical to the bread-and-butter of your entire offensive gameplan.