SB Nation - R.J. Jackson

LSU In Review - Week Four Vs. Mississippi State

BSD — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 13:00:30 -0000

by Rogelio V. Solis - AP

2 months ago: LSU defensive tackle Al Woods (97) signals after the defense denied Mississippi State a last minute fourth quarter touchdown during an NCAA college football game in Starkville, Miss., Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009. LUS won 30-26. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

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Final - 9.26.2009	1	2	3	4	Total
LSU Tigers	13	3	7	7	30
Mississippi St. Bulldogs	14	0	7	5	26

Complete Coverage >

The LSU offense did their best to lose their road game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs in week four of the season. But the LSU defense and special teams were not going to let it happen.

Jordan Jefferson had a career game completing 15-of-28 passes for 233 yards and two touchdowns of 4 and 58 yards to Brandon LaFell, who caught six passes on the day for 101 yards. But the LSU ground attack sputtered for just 30 yards on 31 carries. In fairness, the TIgers lost 18 yards on two sacks, and lost 37 yards rushing on special teams gaffs and in taking an intentional safety. But still. Russell Shepard was the leading rusher with 26 yards on 4 carries from the wildcat formation. Keiland Williams and Charles Scott combined for just 35 yards on 15 carries for the day. LSU converted only 2-of-13 third downs and only managed 12 first downs in the game.

But the Tiger defense bailed them out again. Patrick Peterson grabbed a tipped ball on Mississippi State's first pass of the game and scampered 37 yards for a touchdown. Then in what appears to be a recurring theme this year, LSU shot themselves in the foot. Peterson got flagged for unsportsman like conduct giving the Bulldogs a short field to work with on their drive. But first the holder and center couldn't hook up on the PAT, and they didn't covert. The Bulldogs took the short field and drove 66 yards for a score. They were aided by a pass interference penalty in the endzone that set up a first and goal at the two.

Later in the first quarter, with LSU up 13-7, a snap went over the LSU punter Derek Helton's head. Helton fell on it, but it set up a first and goal for MSU at the LSU 1 yard line. The Bulldogs punched it in to take a 14-13 lead at the end of one.

LSU was set up beautifully in the second quarter when MSU running back Arnil Stallworth fumbled on his own 25 yard line and the Tigers recovered. Shepard then picked up 15 yards on two successive running plays. But then the offense stalled, and LSU was forced to settle for a 22 yard field goal.

MSU took their next drive well into LSU territory before Brandon Taylor intercepted a pass from Tyson Lee at the LSU 17 yard line. After an LSU three-and-out, the Bulldogs were driving again right before the half. But they bungled their own snap on a field goal attempt just before intermission, and the score remained 16-14.

LSU came out firing on their first play of the second half when Jefferson hit LaFell on their 58 yard touchdown hookup. Later in the quarter the Bulldogs responded with a bomb of their own when Lee hit Marcus Green for a 50 yard touchdown to pull the score to 23-21.

On the ensuing drive, the Tigers would blow a chance for more points when a 40 yard pass to R.J. Jackson set up a first and goal at the MSU seven yard line. Jefferson threw two incomplete passes, and then on third and goal at the seven, Jefferson tried to run it in coming up short at the two. Then LSU kicker Josh Jasper missed the chip shot field goal and LSU came away empty allowing the Bulldogs to hang around.

With the game in the balance, it was becoming obvious the offense wasn't going to pull it out on their own. So the special teams stepped up on the first play of the fourth quarter. Chad Jones, who LSU fans will not hesitate to tell you is TEH AWSUM, fielded a punt at his own seven yard line. Then in a return that featured more cuts than a person sticking their arm in a bucket of broken glass, Jones returned the kick 93 yards for the score. The extra point was true and LSU took a 30-21 lead.

On MSU's next drive, the Tigers once again gave up a big play of 46 yards on a pass by backup quarterback Chris Relf to O'Neil Wilder to the LSU 21 yard line. From there the LSU defense held up, and MSU was forced to settle for a 22 yard field goal to pull within six points.

With just 10 minutes to go in the game, a long sustained scoring drive could have sealed the game for LSU. They started out promising gaining 29 yards on their first two plays. But then that was it. Four plays later, Helton punted into the endzone for a touchback, and LSU had only consumed two minutes on five plays. After a failed MSU drive, LSU got the ball with just under six minutes to play and a chance to ice the game. But this time they only gained 9 yards on 5 plays after consuming 1:55, and LSU had to punt from their own 12 yard line.

MSU took the ball at the 50 with 3:53 to play and drove down the field. An 18 yard rush by Anthony Dixon gave them a first and goal at the LSU 2 yard line and it looked like the Tigers were going down. Dixon ran for one yard on first down, and then he got stuffed for no gain on second down. Tyson Lee threw an incomplete pass that was broken up by Chad Jones. Then Lee tried to sneak it in on fourth down, but came up short. The LSU defense saved the game, and the Tigers advanced to the ugliest 4-0 record in the country. But it was good enough to launch them into the top five in the polls.

Drive Chart

FULL SCREEN VERSION

Quotes From The Game

"I still want to run the football. It’s too fundamental to me not to be important, and I want that. I want it for Charles Scottand that offensive line and Keiland Williams, and I want to be able to come off the football." - Les Miles

"Russell Shepard got into the game for a short series, and I really wanted to get him back in the game in the second half. The difference is that we wanted to be in two-back, and we wanted to throw the football, and that’s not necessarily what we want to do with Russell Shepard in the game." - Les Miles

"The offensive line flat out sucks right now. There's no nice way to say it. They suck. They know they suck." - And The Valley Shook

"After the TD to open the half, LSU's offense went into the tank. LSU only had three 1st downs from that point on. The defense wore down as the half went on, but that was due to an offense that simply didn't show up for the second half." - And The Valley Shook

LSU In Review - Weeks Two And Three

BSD — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 15:48:23 -0000

More photos » by Bill Haber - AP

3 months ago: LSU running back Keiland Williams (5) gets away from Louisiana-Lafayette defensive tackle Jordan Topp (98) in the first half of an NCAA college football game in Baton Rouge, La., Saturday, Sept. 19, 2009. (AP Photo/Bill Haber)

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Week Two - Vanderbilt Commodores

Final - 9.12.2009	1	2	3	4	Total
Vanderbilt Commodores	0	7	2	0	9
LSU Tigers	7	6	3	7	23

Complete Coverage >

In week two the LSU Tigers defeated the Vanderbilt Commodores on a rain soaked home opener night game in front of a crowd of 91,000 fans.

Running back Keiland Williams was the star of the night scoring two touchdowns and rushing for 72 yards on 10 carries. Charles Scott added another 49 yards on 13 carries as the Tigers outrushed the Commodores 178-122.

Quarterback Jordan Jefferson dinked and dunked his way for 138 yards on 20-of-29 passing. Brandon LaFell caught 7 passes for 38 yards while senior R.J. Jackson caught six passes for 55 yards. LSU used a little trickeration on their second series when backup quarterback Russell Shepard entered the game. They ran a wildcat play with him where he gained 13 yards. Then on the next play he lined up at reciever and caught a pass for eight yards, but he fumbled at the end of the play.

The LSU defense shut down Vanderbilt quarterback Zac Stacy holding him to just 88 yards passing and under 50% completion. The Tiger defense dominated the night all together holding the Vanderbilt offense to just 210 yards and 7 points.

But LSU was far from perfect on the evening. A poor snap on a punt gave Vanderbilt a safety, and Jefferson threw a pick near the goal line. LSU was fortunate that the latter play was overturned on a defensive holding call. But it was a solid win in the second week of the season for the Tigers.

Quotes From The Game

"Any time you play imperfectly and you come to the postgame, you have to recognize that first things first -- you'd much rather win than do any other thing. That being said, I think we've got to play better. ... There were no style points for this one. That's a fact." - Les Miles

"The defense saved the offense's bacon tonight. We had too many 3-and-outs, and more than one negative possession in the second half. Vandy had great field position for most of the 2nd half thanks to three consecutive possessions in which we ran a total of nine plays with two punts and a bad-snap safety." - And The Valley Shook

Week Three - Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin Cajuns

Final - 9.19.2009	1	2	3	4	Total
Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin Cajuns	0	3	0	0	3
LSU Tigers	7	10	7	7	31

Complete Coverage >

Week three was a sleeper against the Ragin Cajuns. The amazing statistic of the game is that the Cajuns doubled their all-time scoring against the Tigers in Tiger Stadium. In 12 total games played at Baton Rouge, the Cajuns have been outscored 618-6. They have never scored a touchdown. Ever. Wow. The Cajuns gained 272 total yards with 109 yards rushing. Safety Chad Jones had two interceptions for LSU.

The LSU offense wasn't spectacular, but they were good enough to win. Penalties and turnovers plagued them and held the score lower than it should have been. On the day, LSU only gained 330 total yards. Jefferson completed 16-of-25 passes for 165 yards, 2 TD, and 1 INT. He was also sacked once and fumbled. The LSU running back by committee gained 164 yards. Charles Scott gained 63 on 12 carries while Keiland Williams tallied 41 yards on 10 carries.

Though it was an easy win, it was a particularly brutal game from the injury standpoint for LSU. Tight End Richard Dickson suffered a concussion. Jefferson mildly sprained his knee. DT Josh Downs left with a knee problem. Right tackle Joseph Barksdale had to leave the game as well.

Quotes From The Game

"Our quarterback was not necessarily in a groove early, but we have some talent and we have the ability to make plays. We're not hitting on all cylinders just yet." - Les Miles

"The offensive line should be dominating teams like this and is not doing so. Jordan Jefferson misses open receivers at times. The defense is much improved from the Washington game to now, but still gives up the occasional long, methodical drive or big 3rd down conversion. " - And The Valley Shook

"He's a young quarterback. (Jefferson) He sees some guys open and he's 'Ooh, ooh . . .' and he's not comfortable in his mechanics. He rushes. We've got to get him in practice and do it again, do it again, do it again." - Les Miles

If College Football Had a Playoff: #13 LSU Tigers @ #4 TCU Horned Frogs

Jeremy Mauss — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 17:07:10 -0000

More photos » by Will Powers - AP

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Before we get to game four the previous matchup of #12 Penn State @ #5 Florida came down to the very end with Penn State completing the first upset, and becomes the second lower seed, but first true upset in the "If College Football had a playoff." The vote was very close 93-87.

This matchup features TCU who is the top non-BCS seed and has dominated nearly every game and has played three teams that are currently ranked or were ranked in the top 25 during the season. This TCU team is top 10 in offense and defense, so LSU will have a difficult time trying to stop them or to moving the ball.

The LSU running game is balanced but nothing dynamic and unless LSU can have moderate success they will eventually become one-dimensional throwing the ball. However, LSU is 13th in total defense which would be the best defense to date that the Horned Frogs would face, and the fastest defense as well surpassing the Utes in that category.

To give some help to those who are not sure who would win I turned to What if Sports to simulate this game. The winner would be TCU in a minor blowout 2 6-3; LSU did have the game tied at 3-3 but then TCU ran off 23 straight points. The Horned Frogs rolled up 320 yards and had the edge in time of possession 38 minutes to 21 minutes.

What if Sports is not the decider in this game, you yes you! The readers of this site decide who moves onto the next round.

So gather your friends to stuff the ballot and check back daily at 12 PM eastern time to vote for the next matchup, and voting is only open for 24 hours. As they say in Chicago vote early and vote often.

TCU Stats

Passing

		Passing									Rushing					Sacks
	G	Rating	Comp	Att	Pct	Yds	Y/G	Y/A	TD	INT	Rush	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD	Sack	YdsL
Andy Dalton	12	93.0	174	279	62.4	2484	207	8.9	22	5	107	522	43.5	4.9	3	-	-
Marcus Jackson	7	265.0	2	2	100	23	3.3	11.5	1	0	17	48	6.9	2.8	0	-	-

Rushing

		Rushing					Receiving
	G	Rush	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD	Rec	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD
Ryan Christian	11	14	66	6	4.7	0	19	244	22.2	12.8	3
Andy Dalton	12	107	522	43.5	4.9	3	0	0	0	0	0
Skye Dawson	7	13	111	15.9	8.5	0	0	0	0	0	0
Yogi Gallegos	1	1	4	4	4	0	0	0	0	0	0
Antoine Hicks	12	9	20	1.7	2.2	4	14	309	25.8	22.1	4
Marcus Jackson	7	17	48	6.9	2.8	0	0	0	0	0	0
Jeremy Kerley	12	14	50	4.2	3.6	3	37	457	38.1	12.4	2
Ed Wesley	11	93	605	55	6.5	4	7	142	12.9	20.3	2

Receiving

		Receiving
	G	Rec	Yds	Y/G	AVG	TD
Logan Brock	5	5	67	13.4	13.4	0
Ryan Christian	11	19	244	22.2	12.8	3
Curtis Clay	11	14	188	17.1	13.4	2
Evan Frosch	3	3	33	11	11	0
Antoine Hicks	12	14	309	25.8	22.1	4
Bart Johnson	12	26	350	29.2	13.5	0
Jonathan Jones	3	3	30	10	10	0
Jeremy Kerley	12	37	457	38.1	12.4	2
Billy Pizor	1	1	10	10	10	1
Ed Wesley	11	7	142	12.9	20.3	2
Jimmy Young	11	27	430	39.1	15.9	3

Kicking

		Field Goals								PAT
	G	0-19	20-29	30-39	40-49	50+	FGM	FGA	PCT	XPM	XPA	PCT	pts
Ross Evans	12	-	-	-	-	-	14	17	80.0%	60	62	100.0%	102

LSU Stats

Passing

		Passing									Rushing					Sacks
	G	Rating	Comp	Att	Pct	Yds	Y/G	Y/A	TD	INT	Rush	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD	Sack	YdsL
Jordan Jefferson	11	93.0	169	272	62.1	1964	178.5	7.2	16	6	104	160	14.5	1.5	1	-	-
Jarrett Lee	6	73.0	16	40	40	197	32.8	4.9	2	1	3	-23	-3.8	-7.7	0	-	-
Russell Shepard	10	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	45	277	27.7	6.2	2	-	-

Rushing

		Rushing					Receiving
	G	Rush	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD	Rec	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD
Trindon Holliday	12	23	116	9.7	5	1	3	36	3	12	0
Jordan Jefferson	11	104	160	14.5	1.5	1	0	0	0	0	0
Brandon LaFell	12	4	6	.500	1.5	0	52	705	58.8	13.6	10
Jarrett Lee	6	3	-23	-3.8	-7.7	0	0	0	0	0	0
Richard Murphy	2	2	10	5	5	0	1	4	2	4	0
Charles Scott	9	116	542	60.2	4.7	4	8	54	6	6.8	1
Russell Shepard	10	45	277	27.7	6.2	2	5	34	3.4	6.8	0
Keiland Williams	10	70	368	36.8	5.3	4	4	22	2.2	5.5	0

Receiving

		Receiving
	G	Rec	Yds	Y/G	AVG	TD
Richard Dickson	9	20	150	16.7	7.5	0
Trindon Holliday	12	3	36	3	12	0
R.J. Jackson	4	11	141	35.3	12.8	0
Mitch Joseph	2	2	18	9	9	0
Brandon LaFell	12	52	705	58.8	13.6	10
Chris Mitchell	7	10	65	9.3	6.5	0
Richard Murphy	2	1	4	2	4	0
Deangelo Peterson	4	5	82	20.5	16.4	2
Reuben Randle	7	10	146	20.9	14.6	2
Charles Scott	9	8	54	6	6.8	1
Terrance Toliver	10	47	654	65.4	13.9	3
John Williams	1	1	17	17	17	0
Keiland Williams	10	4	22	2.2	5.5	0

Kicking

		Field Goals								PAT
	G	0-19	20-29	30-39	40-49	50+	FGM	FGA	PCT	XPM	XPA	PCT	pts
Josh Jasper	12	-	-	-	-	-	16	19	80.0%	34	34	100.0%	82

Poll

Who wins?

TCU

475 votes

LSU

335 votes

810 votes | Poll has closed

LSU 23 - Vandy 9: Snap Judgments

Richard Pittman — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 02:49:17 -0000

More photos » by Bill Haber - AP

3 months ago: Vanderbilt cornerback Myron Lewis (5) up ends LSU quarterback Russell Shepard (10) in the first half of an NCAA college football game in Baton Rouge, La., Saturday, Sept. 12, 2009. (AP Photo/Bill Haber)

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Big win tonight. I am reasonably pleased. My quick thoughts:

Great job defense. Just outstanding. I can't say enough about how well this defense responded to a lot of criticism. They gave up really only one good drive, and then came up big again and again when the offense put them in bad spots in the second half.
I'm upset that the announcers stole my thunder towards the end of the game by pointing out how quiet Patrick Peterson was. The announcers were right that "quiet" for Peterson means "great". He was locked one-on-one with a Vandy receiver on his side of the field all night and Vandy QB Larry Smith just didn't even challenge him. They seemed content just to run him out of the play.
The whole defensive line played well. I know some naysayers will point to some nice plays Vandy made, but it's inevitable that a competent offense will make the occasional nice play. We stuffed them for no gain or short gains time and again, and we did a good job of getting off the field on 3rd down, as Vandy was 4 of 15 on 3rd down, and 1 of 2 on 4th down. On first viewing I can't single out any one defensive lineman, as Woods, Nevis, Alem, Lavar Edwards, Charles Alexander, and others made plays at one time or another.
One of the new faces on the defense, Brandon Taylor, had a very good game, picking up an interception, making a couple nice tackles, and generally being competent.
The defense saved the offense's bacon tonight. We had too many 3-and-outs, and more than one negative possession in the second half. Vandy had great field position for most of the 2nd half thanks to three consecutive possessions in which we ran a total of nine plays with two punts and a bad-snap safety.
Speaking of the bad snap safety, the long snapper on punts is actually a scholarship player whose only role on the team, as a sophomore, is to be the punt snapper. It is doubtful that this is a wise use of a scholarship in any event, and he better be flawless the rest of the season.
Jordan Jefferson's ATVSQBPI was 4.0. A big part of the problem was way too many completed passes that went for very short or negative yardage. Another problem was the offensive line play, which again was not up to snuff for long stretches. Jefferson was running for his life every time he dropped back to pass in those 3 bad possessions.
Keiland Williams had a really great game, averaging 7.2 yards per carry with the game-clinching touchdown. Charles Scott is still trying to get it going, as he averaged only 3.8 yards per carry. He had some nice runs, but the blocking just wasn't there consistently.
Great to see R.J. Jackson get so many touches, including one that led directly to a score that could have ended up being very important.
We finally saw Russell Shepard, and while he was productive, hopefully his fumble will be a learning experience for him. I'm still waiting to see Reuben Randle touch the ball.
Except for Trindon Holliday's fumble, the return game was really quite good tonight.
I caught sight of Morris Claiborne in the game and making a tackle.

Fall Camp Storylines So Far

Richard Pittman — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 11:50:54 -0000

They've been going at it for about a week in Baton Rouge, preparing in earnest for the season to start, and already there are a few surprising developments at LSU's Fall Camp. We Highlight some of the bigger ones:

Brandon Taylor jumps into the competition for the strong safety spot. Easily the biggest surprise was when talented but little-used sophomore cornerback Brandon Taylor opened the running with the first team at strong safety. Before camp began, the strong safety position was generally considered to be up for competition, but most expected the competition to be between Spring sensation Ron Brooks and last year's backup Karnell Hatcher. I expected Taylor as a dark horse to maybe challenge for the cornerback slot opposite Patrick Peterson. Instead, as practice opened, Taylor was moved into the strong safety slot running opposite of Chad Jones. Brooks was with the second team, and Hatcher was with the freshman, ostensibly as the third team safety. The running order has not changed yet in the parts of practice that the media sees. It may be simply that the coaches were giving Taylor a look at that position in hopes of developing versatility, but it was simply that, why would he go with the first team and not the second or third? This is a situation that will get the closest attention from here to the beginning of the season.

The surprising introduction of Morris Claiborne. In a class with, by some counts, four 5-star players reporting to camp, and one 5-star still trying to get eligible, the Class of 2009 member who is turning the most heads is a 3-star recruit named Morris Claiborne. That's right; the guy no one had heard of until the middle of his senior year. The guy who did not even have a picture of him up on the recruiting sites well into his senior season. I'm not saying he's an immediate contributor to this team or anything like that. At least not yet. He still has to find a position and master it in order be really useful. He began camp practicing at wide receiver with the rest of the freshman. He was quickly promoted to the morning practice sessions with the veterans and switched to cornerback, where he has run with the second unit. I am thinking he will end up at cornerback, because he lacks ideal size for a wide receiver, but his long arms and quickness will be a huge asset in the defensive backfield. It would surprise me at all to see him back on offense though, and it wouldn't shock me if he ends up playing both ways at some point in his career. If he's second string right now, he will probably play immediately, but I would prefer to give him a chance to redshirt and master whatever position he ends up playing. It would also give him some separation between the veteran corners on the roster and himself, giving him more opportunity to play in the future.
Offensive tackle Chris Faulk starts out on the second team at left tackle. When Fall Camp opened, every member of the Class of 2009 was practicing in the afternoon session, away from most of the veterans who practice in the morning. All, that is, except one. Offensive lineman Chris Faulk started camp practicing in the morning with the veterans, and he was doing it at left tackle, behind Ciron Black. This is a remarkable achievement for a young player. I do not remember a true freshman coming in and immediately practicing with the veterans before. Not even the guys who got here in the spring, like Kevin Minter, Drayton Calhoun, and Russell Shepard, were running with the veterans at the start of camp. Patrick Peterson was in the afternoon sessions at the beginning of last year. Rueben Randle practiced in the afternoon. As time went on, Faulk was joined by a couple other freshman. Barkevious Mingo was promoted for a day. Morris Claiborne was promoted. But Faulk was there from the beginning. He even moved last year's backup left tackle, Greg Shaw, over to right tackle. His future must be incredibly bright.
The development of the wide receivers. Terrance Toliver finally looks like he's going to approach that sky-high potential he has always had. He's put some real muscle mass on his frame, and can finally fight off physical defensive backs. He has always had great length and long arms, but he's been lanky. With a little added muscle it opens up the prospect of him being a receiver in traffic, where before Toliver was always mostly a deep threat. I believe Terrance Toliver is going to have that breakout year this year. I don't think he'll be one of the best in the SEC, but if he can increase his receptions total to about 40 while retaining his big play ability (that we did not see enough of last year after a freshman year that saw him average 25 yards per catch), he will be an outstanding complement to Brandon Lafell. True freshman Rueben Randle also looks like he is for real and will be able to make an immediate contribution. As I said before, don't expect Jones-like or Green-like numbers as a freshman, but if he can pull in 20 or so catches, he will really help this team. Veterans R.J. Jackson and Chris Mitchell make me feel pretty good about the depth at the position, and Chris Tolliver may be able to make a contribution as well. I really think this has the makings of a very good overall wide receiver unit.
Competition at center and at fullback. The most important position battle on the team right now is going on at center between P.J. Lonergan and T-Bob Hebert. It was believed that Hebert had the inside track going into camp, but Lonergan started the season practicing with the first team while Hebert ran with the rookies in the afternoon session. In yesterday's first full-squad practice the two were finally on the field together and Hebert was apparently first-team. This is the most important battle because barring injury you have to imagine that whoever wins this battle will play almost every significant snap and the second teamer will have trouble finding the field, while there could be a rotation at strong safety. A similar competition is ongoing at fullback where we have recently seen tight end Tyler Edwards jump into the fray that previously includedStevan Ridley, Richard Dugas, and Dominique Allen. Ridley is definitely the most capable runner (though Allen appears surprisingly nimble for such a big man and could end up being a surprising playmaker later on). Dugas is the converted offensive lineman. Allen is the freshman. It is anyone's guess how these snaps will be divided up in the season.
Freshman defensive linemen impressing all. The defensive line members of the Class of 2009: Josh Downs, Chris Davenport, Mike Brockers, Bennie Logan, and Sam Montgomery, are getting early raves and bringing back memories of Spears, Hill, Lavalais, etc.

Getting Back Into Football

Richard Pittman — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 01:47:42 -0000

Sorry for not posting yesterday. The intertubes had a blowout on me and when I wanted to post, there was no posting to be done. Anyway, here's an article for you.

Lately we have given you all things baseball, which is fine. It's been a lot of fun watching and commenting on this team striving for and ultimately achieving a national championship. LSU baseball is a wonderful program with wonderful fans. Here in Tuscaloosa, despite the fact that the local team was reasonably decent (heading into the last weekend of the season, they had a shot to win the SEC West), there was almost no regular coverage of the team. I do not think there was one Crimson Tide baseball game broadcast locally on television all year. The local talk radio, which I listen to at times, never once mentioned the team in my hearing. They just don't care about baseball here, and that's kind of foreign to me.

But now, baseball season is over. We have celebrated our good fortune and discussed the future. Now it is time to move on. Lo and behold, the opening kickoff of the football season is a mere 2 months away. It sounds like ages, which is the impetus for the new blog title, "An LSU sports blog currently experiencing the long dark offseason of the soul," which for those of you in the know, is an obvious reference to a novel by Douglas Adams, may he rest in satirical bliss.

About a month ago, I celebrated the fact that the football team was making almost no news. The thought was that all news was bad news. Any news about the football team that came out now would likely either be an injury, an arrest, or a suspension. Wouldn't you know it, the first bit of news to come out since then was about an injury.

Redshirt freshman wide receiver Tim Molton tore a ligament in his knee and is lost for the season. It's a terrible blow for a young man who had reportedly moved up the depth chart to the point where he was expected to make a significant contribution this season. It's a significant blow to his career and to the depth in the receiver corps. It was expected that Brandon Lafell and Terrance Toliver would be the #1 and #2 receivers on the team, but Molton was generally expected to compete for the #3 spot with veterans Chris Mitchell and R.J. Jackson and incoming freshman sensation Rueben Randle. Now his career is on hold. Good luck to the young man, and please come back to the team ready to go in 2010.

via media.scout.com

The second piece of news to come out recently came from TigerSportsDigest, in an original reporting that is well worth the subscription fee, about incoming freshman safety Craig Loston. While we have previously said that All News Is Bad News, this piece of news was more of a good news/bad news combination. Craig Loston, one of the crown jewels of an outstanding recruiting class, is qualified and will be enrolling in school today. The downside is that he needs wrist surgery that will keep him sidelined until October. A true freshman who can't practice with the team or even workout until October? I can't imagine he will be able to contribute this year, and I suppose a redshirt year is in order.

The kid is going to be a player, and I am thrilled he's made it to school and that he'll be learning the schemes and acclimating himself to college and to the team while he rehabs.

The team is currently going through 7-on-7 drills. Regular practice begins in early August and kickoff is on September 5, 2009, very late at night.

For the next couple months, we will follow the progress of the team, give overviews of the new players added to the roster, and generally fret about football like Arthur Dent.

LSU Preview

John Berkowitz — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 15:14:39 -0000

As the 2009 season approaches, Washington once again will have one of the toughest schedules in college football, starting the season with a bang as LSU visits to open the season on Sept 5. The Tigers are coming off a disappointing 8-5 season, but there is plenty of talent on the squad to make another serious run for a SEC West title. LSU may not be of the same caliber as a USC, but they are a solid top 15 pick heading into the season.

Sophomore Jordan Jefferson looks to have earned the starting QB spot this past spring. Jefferson is 6'4" and very mobile. He played in seven games last season, starting twice. The obvious highlight of his 2008 campaign was leading the Tigers to a 38-3 upset win over Georgia Tech in the season's finale. Jordan finished the 2009 season by connecting on 36 of 73 passes for 419 yards, four touchdowns and just one interception, He also rushed for 134 yards and one TD on 49 carries. The Tiger defense will be ready for Jake Locker, as they will practice against a similar player every day.

The running back position is loaded with talent, experience, and depth. The Tigers return three seniors who each can break a game open. LSU is led by Charles Scott, who rushed for over 1000 yards in 2008. Keiland Williams and Trindon Holliday provide plenty of experienced, quality depth, keeping defenses on their toes.

The wide receivers are led by Brandon LaFell, who tallied a team-leading 63 receptions last season. LaFell is an NFL-type talent who could have gone early in the 2009 pro football draft. Chris Mitchell, R.J. Jackson, Tim Molton, Chris Tolliver and five star recruit Ruben Randle will all push for playing time when the Tigers line up in three-and-four-wide sets. Randle will come in this fall with the ability to immediately start for the Tigers. Senior TE Richard Dickson returns and is a good bet to earn some post-season honors.

The Tigers' offensive line has the look of a rebuilding unit, as they lost three starters to graduation and the NFL. Bob Hebert, who was limited in 2009 spring drills due to a knee injury suffered during the 2008 season, will be the new starter at center. Josh Dworaczyk steps into the left guard spot, with Lyle Hitt returning for his senior year at right guard, plus Ciron Black and Joseph Barksdale teaming up to be one of the better tackle tandems in the SEC.

The key to the enduring success of the LSU football program under the regimes of both Les Miles and Nick Saban has been its defense. With all the growing that must take place on the offensive side of the ball in 2009, the defense will be counted on to pick up a lot of the early slack. LSU feels they have addressed this need by retooling its defensive staff in the form of three new assistant coaches.

The defensive line is rebuilding after losing their top five players to graduation in 2008. The Tigers return senior DE Rahim Alem , who led the SEC in sacks a year ago, and also got a boost from the NCAA when they granted DT Charles Alexander a sixth year of eligibility. Junior Pep Levingston and has taken hold of the defensive end spot this spring opposite Alem and it looks like he could be a player. He will most likely line up next to DT Drake Nevis. LSU is going to be challenged early up front this year because of the losses but they have a lot of talent in line that is just waiting for their first chances of getting into the rotation.

At linebacker the Tigers return Seniors Jacob Cutrera and Perry Riley, along with Jr. Kelvin Sheppard. All three have have all played a lot of football at LSU. Since LSU is bringing in a new DC expect some early growing pains as the talent adjust to the new schemes which were implemented last spring.

The Tigers are loaded at defensive back. CB Patrick Peterson and safety Chad Jones have All-American type talent. The other starting corner will likely be senior Chris Hawkins, who led the team with three interceptions and nine pass breakups a year ago. Pushing Hawkins and Peterson is junior Jai Eugene and sophomore Brandon Taylor, and they will more than likely battle for the nickel spot. Ron Brooks and Karnell Hatcher are battling it out for the starting spot at the other safety position.

Consensus

LSU is rebuiliding but not in the same sense that Washington is. The difference is that LSU has a solid pipeline of young talent that has been tutored to expect success.

The inexperience at QB is going to hurt them early in the season. On defense rebuilding the front four with a new DC is also going to cause some early growing pains.

Expect the Tigers to finish in the top 25 but they are realistically a year away from contending for a national championship unless their QB grows up in a hurry against the always tough SEC schedule.

How does UW match up?

Realistically Washington should be playing Nevada or Utah State to open the season and not a team like LSU. UW is however going to be catching the Tigers at home at probably the best time all season to play them. UW obviously comes in with an edge at QB and our young receivers should be able to match up well with LSU. The offensive line will have its hands full with the Tigers defensive front even though they are in rebuilding mode. UW's offensive line frankly doesn't cut it at this point and only recruiting, time, and talent will change that.

Defensively the Huskies get a break facing an inexperienced QB starting the season on the road. I expect improvement in every phase of the Husky defense this season which is easy to say because they were argualby the worst unit in the BCS last season.

Early Prediction

Washington should be able to hang with the Tigers early in this one. They should be fired up and playing over their heads in their nationally televised debut under new head coach Steve Sarkisian. Whenever you insert Jake Locker into the lineup it is a great equalizer to make up for a sup par offensive line. An enthusiastic full house to open the season should create quite a bit of excitement in Husky Stadium.

That being said overall talent and depth wins football games and sometime in the third quarter LSU should begin to pull away like so many teams such as Ohio State have done to UW in recent years. This one will be closer than expected but I am thinking pulls away and wins 31 - 21.

Questions Coming Out of Spring Practice

Richard Pittman — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 11:42:51 -0000

With Spring Practice Officially dead and buried, it is time to look at some of the questions we still have.

1. How will the revamped offensive line perform? Last year, the offensive line was one of the strengths of the team, as we ran well and generally protected the QB as much as it could be expected against SEC defenses. This year, we have to replace 2 of the veteran linemen in Brett Helms and Herman Johnson, both of whom will be in an NFL training camp. Coming out of Spring, it looks like their spots will be taken by sophomores Josh Dworaczyk and T-Bob Hebert. What we do not know and can hardly even speculate about at this point is whether those two are really good, or if they're just "better than the alternative". Offensive line play is always the most important determining factor about how an offense will perform, as poor line play will adversely affect both the running and the passing games, and good line play will open up holes for your running backs and make your QB very comfortable in the pocket. The play of Dworaczyk and Hebert will go a long way to determining how this team will perform offensively this year. We know Ciron Black is as solid as a left tackle gets, and Lyle Hitt is a 3-year starter, so we know what he brings. We will also need Joseph Barksdale to step up his play and go from being "promising" to being "studly". Word is he is on his way to doing just that, but we will have to see.

2. Will we get consistently good quarterback play? LSU fans rightly have high hopes for Jordan Jefferson and Russell Shepard, and we actually have something of a luxury in having Jarrett Lee as an experienced player beginning the season in a backup role. The problem remains however that we have a VERY young quarterback group. We don't have any quarterback who's been around long enough to be a junior, and Jarrett Lee's 9 starts makes him by far the most experienced on the roster. Jordan Jefferson has showed great promise, but we need to remember that he is just a true sophomore, and he has started only 2 games. We enter the 2009 season with the least experience at the QB spot of any team in the conference, though South Carolina has a somewhat comparable situation.

3. Will we have productive complementary players at the skill positions? Brandon Lafell is an outstanding player and a true #1 receiver. Will we have a quality #2, #3, and #4, or will we have to rely on TE Richard Dickson even more? After a couple years of looking really great in his uniform, it is Terrance Toliver's turn to become a reliable producer. Whenever a player transitions from sophomore to junior year, you have to stop talking about his potential and start talking about his production. At 6'5" and with outstanding speed and athleticism, Toliver's potential is through the roof, but it's time to do something with it. He ended last year on a high note, catching 16 passes in his final 5 games, after catching only 6 in the previous 8. If he continues that pace and breaks a few nice gains out of it. We will also need Chris Mitchell, RJ Jackson, Tim Molton, or one of the other receivers to step up play as well. Rueben Randle or even Russell Shepard could figure into this in the Fall.

At running back, we know Charles Scott is a good power running back with the intelligence and durability to be a #1 tailback. But you need more than that. Keiland Williams was inconsistent despite solid line play, though he got more productive as the season wore on. I will speculate that I think he was not in optimum condition at the beginning of the year and he lost a step of speed. He needs to be a speed back, so he needs to get that step back. Junior Richard Murphy had a disastrous sophomore season after having high expectations heading into the season. One of these two guys will have to step up play for LSU to reach its potential. We do not know if Stevan Ridley will be sufficiently recovered from his injury to be a factor in the 2009 season. If Keiland or Murphy or Ridley can't be productive behind Scott, we may see a lot of Michael Ford when he reports for his freshman season.

4. Who will be our backup defensive linemen?

Unlike an offensive line, a defensive line cannot live by its starters alone. It needs depth. It needs a rotation. We believe we have our top 4 offensive linemen in Pep Levingston, Drake Nevis, Al Woods, and Rahim Alem. We think they are going to be very good-to-outstanding players. Levingston would be a big surprise to me. I did not really expect that of him, and I am pleased to hear the good reports. The questions are who will be backing those guys up, and how will they perform when they're needed? Charles Alexander brings experience to the defensive tackle position, as he will be on his 6th year of eligibility and was a full-time starter last year. Other than Cheese, our backups will be very green. Redshirt freshmen Lavar Edwards, Chancey Aghayere, and Chase Clement appear to have the inside track. I loved Aghayere when he was a prospect, but he has had to battle back from high school injuries.

5. Whither the defensive backfield?

We think we're pretty sure that, barring injury, Chad Jones and Patrick Peterson are going to be the starters at corner and at free safety. Other than that, it's all a mystery. Chris Hawkins was the only player to start all 13 games last year in the secondary, but he was on the Purple team for the spring game, which would suggest that he has been passed up on the depth chart. Jai Eugene took his place. Last year's starting strong safety has been moved to linebacker. Ron Brooks has won accolades at the position, but no one has said he's won a job. Karnell Hatcher was a standout last year as a true freshman, and he will have something to say about who plays that spot. At corner, we have Hawkins, Eugene, and Brandon Taylor battling for the last starting spot opposite Patrick Peterson. At strong safety we have Ron Brooks and Karnell Hatcher. Plus we have Derrick Bryant who played a bit as a freshman and who certainly isn't giving up. Even if we can make some educated guesses about who will be starting, we have absolutely no idea who will come into the game in nickel or dime situations. There's been some noise we won't have a true nickel package, but we know we'll have a dime. And let's not forget that super-prospect Craig Loston will be here soon.