COLLEGE FOOTBALL IN BAD MS PAINT

I like college football and I suck at MS paint, so I decided to put those two things together and make an off-beat college football blog.

I have plenty of ideas, such as a "Criterion Collection" for football games, wordless game previews, power rankings of lots of things, commentary, and lots of begging of Spencer Hall to take notice. I'll be hard at work for the next few days making a bunch of content, so please refresh the page every thirty seconds or so for the next month.

Here it is: the doozie- a 38-point loss to a team that was simply better.  This win ensures that no team in the SEC will go undefeated.

Trent Johnson made a wise decision to sit Ralston Turner rather than risk injury in a game LSU had little chance of winning.  There's no way Turner would have made 38 points worth of difference.

It was a poor game for our backcourt.  The three guys who we were counting to make 3-pointers, Stringer, Derenbecker, and Dotson, went a combined 0-18 from downtown.  Dotson went 0-3, Derenbecker went 0-5 and Stringer was 0-10.  Stringer and D-Beck looked like freshmen out there.

Garrett Green's fine season continues- the big man scored 13 in this contest and added 9 rebounds, both team highs.  Surprisingly, Green made 2 of LSU's 3 3-pointers. Garrett Green's surprising run continues: he's been LSU's best player since December.

Eddie Ludwig made the other 3-pointer and finished with 7 points and 4 rebounds. Aaron Dotson had his best scoring game in awhile, reaching double-digit points (10) for the first time since November.  Notoriously hot-and-cold Malcolm White was ice cold- no points, 3 boards and fouling out after just 15 minutes.

The good news for the Tigers is that it gets a whole week off.  Hopefully, Ralston Turner will be good to go when LSU faces Ole Miss in the PMAC.  The Rebels have yet to win an SEC contest, and they aren't likely to beat Vanderbilt on Wednesday, so they'll probably be angrier than Andy Kennedy in a taxi driven by a Muhammad.

A bad loss is not enough to kill delusional optimism, though.  Let's pack the PMAC this Saturday!

Last season, LSU started 0-12 in SEC play and finished 2-14 (2-15 if you count the SEC tournament loss to Tennessee).  LSU has now matched that win total and reached double-digit wins in the process.

Player of the game- Garrett Green, who continues his surprising run with a 10-point, 10 rebound performance, just the second double-double of his career.  He's now averaging 10 points over his last 7 games.  We are looking at a new basketball player here.  He was a beast at the boards and he had 3 emphatic slams.  With Malcolm White manning the five, Garrett Green has come alive at the power forward position (which is his more natural position).

Malcolm White led LSU scoring with 13 points and 7 rebounds.  If not for his 4 turnovers and 4 fouls, I would have named him co-POTG, but his effort tonight remains commendable.  Tonight, he was on, shooting well from the paint, and overall getting it done.

Matt Derenbecker continues to prove that he has what it takes to be a part of LSU's starting five.  Tonight, he proved that he can make a great impact even when his 3-point shot isn't sinking.  He was 0-4 from the arc, but that just gave him a chance to show off his inside scoring game.  D-Beck made some great moves to the basket, finishing 5-9 (5-5 on shots inside the arc) for 12 points, adding 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals.

Andre Stringer showed off new depth as a point guard, earning a career-high 7 assists.  He had another rough shooting night (2-8, 1-5), but his free throws at the end were huge for the Tigers.

Great first half, not-so-great second half.  Obviously, the Tigers are doing something right in the first half.  Now the Tigers need to figure out how to continue that rhythm over the second half.  Ralston Turner's injury might have been a good thing for the Tigers since it gave Matt Derenbecker a chance to reveal his talents, but the Tigers have been fading down the stretch in the second-half, and lack of depth as a result of Turner's absence could be the key here.  Getting him back will make a big difference in that department.

But hell, it's another win.  The Tigers have to be brimming with confidence right now, and they'll need all of it and more when they travel to Rupp Arena to play Kentucky on Saturday.  Hopefully, the Tigers will have revenge on their minds.  Kentucky is a good team, but they are beatable as Georgia proved last week.  It's time to spread delusional optimism to basketball.  Let's Geaux!

I figured, hell, why not extend delusional optimism to basketball?

Game is on the old JP/LF/Raycom affiliate in your area, and is supposedly not subject to blackout on ESPN3.com

Full affiliate list after the break.

GEAUX TIGERS!

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Let's give to Coach Miles what he's deserved all along- adoration.  Don't just accept Miles.  Don't just embrace him either- adore him.  Bow down.  For he is the king of LSU.

Les Miles is an LSU man, now and forever.  By spurning Michigan a second time, Miles has proven that he wants to be LSU's coach forever, and that's exactly why we should love him.  He has done what Saban didn't do- stay here.  That's why Miles, and not Saban, is and will be the greatest coach in LSU history.

Let's enjoy the quirkiness.  Let's love the way he wears his hat and the way he talks during interviews.  Let's love the seal clap and the grass grazing.  Let's even love the time management, and the unnecessary drama.  Let's love these things because they are the by-products of Les Miles' greatness.

I won't say names, but there are some LSU fans who don't deserve to have a brilliant, loyal winner like Miles coaching their favorite team.  Hell, I'm not even sure if I'm worthy.  But now is the chance for us to redeem ourselves as fans.

There's nothing delusional about optimism anymore.  Under the Hatter's helm, LSU is a great team, has been a great team, and will remain a great team.  So stop the hate, and feel the love.

You can start by making the following promise:

As of today (date) I, (your name), will refrain from writing or talking disrespectfully about Leslie Edwin Miles as long as he continues to produce winning seasons (i.e. not losing seasons) at LSU.

A win is a win.  A conference win is a conference win.  Yeah, we almost blew it, but we didn't blow it.  It's a win.

LSU went into halftime with a jaw-dropping 32-6 advantage.  Auburn scored 49 points in the second half, but was unable to complete a comeback.

The player of the game was Matt Derenbecker, who got his first career start, and rewarded Coach Johnson with 15 points, 8 rebounds (a team high) and 3 assists.  He was 3-7 from behind the arc, and two of those threes were absolutely huge makes that stopped a big Auburn run.  Derenbecker struggled for the first part of the season, but it appears that the light has come on.

Derenbecker started because of a stress reaction on Ralston Turner's foot.  Aaron Dotson has been really struggling as of late, so when Turner returns, don't be surprised if Derenbecker remains in LSU's starting five.

LSU's other big star on the evening was Garrett Green, who led LSU scoring with 18 points.  His 18 points came on a superb 9 for 11 shooting mark, and he also added 5 rebounds.  Auburn's defense had no answer for him.  Here's a stat for sore eyes: Garrett Green has averaged 10.3 points over his last six games.

Andre Stringer did not have a great shooting night, shooting just 2-11 from the arc, but he did finish with 9 points, adding 3 assists and 2 steals.

Storm Warren was limited to 7 minutes with tendonitis on his right Achilles, but was able to snag 6 rebounds for the Tigers.  LSU's quartet of big men, Warren, White, Green and Ludwig played good defense for LSU, especially in the first half, when Auburn was held to an absurd 6 points.  Chris Bass continues to play fine ball in a supporting role, leading the Tigers in assists with 4.

LSU needs just 1 win to match last year's conference total.  On Wednesday, the Tigers have a date with 11-3 Arkansas in the PMAC.  The Razorbacks are fresh off a win against Tennessee, and are looking like the best in the West.  Can LSU make it 2-0?  One thing's for certain- we all feel alot better about the Tigers now than we did before last night's game.

LSU reminds me a little of the Minnesota Timberwolves.  The Timberwolves are a young team bursting at the seams with young superstar talent, but they just don't quite know how to win yet.

LSU scored 11 points in the final minute to ALMOST break the hearts of Rice.  Andre Stringer's turnover with 9 seconds left may have sealed the deal for Rice, but he scored 8 points for the Tigers during that final minute.  His 19 points were a team high.

Matt Derenbecker played easily the best game of his young career, scoring 17 points, going 3-6 from the arc and converting a huge 3-point play to pull the Tigers within two with 19 seconds left. Ralston Turner had a rough first half, but finished with 14 points, and ended a bad spell by making three 3's late in the second half.

Those three freshmen produced 50 of the team's 68 points.

Fouls were LSU's downfall.  Malcolm White scored just two points and 4 rebounds and was on the court for just 13 minutes before fouling out.  Eddie Ludwig also fouled out after just 13 minutes.  He got 4 rebounds, but was unable to score.  Aaron Dotson fouled out after 18 minutes, scoring just 2 points.  White has been on and off (today he was very off), Ludwig has made little impact as of late, and Dotson has cooled off considerably after his hot start.  These three absolutely need to step it up.

There are no more mid-majors left on LSU's schedule.  The Tigers host the Virginia Cavaliers on January 2nd, and then SEC play begins.  The Tigers need to make it their New Years resolution to learn how to win in 2011.

via i222.photobucket.com

This game was, umm... I mean, it was... uh...

I'm speechless.  North Texas was a tournament team last year, and I knew that the Mean Green was no cupcake.  But to lose by 20 points?  To end the first half with North Texas on a 17-2 run?  North Texas?

LSU is an SEC team.  Maybe basketball isn't as big of a deal as football, and aside from a handful of all-time players, LSU has no consistent tradition of winning.  But LSU is not 20 points worse than North Texas.  This team is looking worse than last year's, and last year was LSU's worst team since the 50's.  Wasn't this supposed to be our "bounce back" year?

Good F'n grief.  The Cotton Bowl and Baseball can't come soon enough.

My apologies, everybody.  I've been down and out as far as basketball coverage since the Nicholls State game.  That one was a killer, you know.

I need to get back on track.  Here's the good news and bad news on the season so far.

The good news:

The SEC West is weak.  While football in the SEC west has never been better, basketball in the SEC west is just pathetic right now.  Alabama and Auburn are just terrible right now.  Mississippi State just lost to UAB.  LSU might actually be one of the better teams in the West right now along with Arkansas and Ole Miss, though it's still too early to tell.  On the other hand, the East is a beast.  5 of the East's teams have 7 wins, and Georgia has 6.  Nobody in the West has more than 6.  Tennessee looks like a powerhouse, not a team that has NCAA trouble.  Kentucky, once again, is great.  Let's be thankful we play Alabama and Auburn twice this season, and these guys only once.

Aaron Dotson.  People say he has a new knee, but I'm wondering if he actually has a new pair of eyeballs.  Dotson has made 10 of his 15 3-point attempts just one year after making just 7 of 46.  Dotson has improved in every single area as a player, and now he looks like a guy that Louisville missed out on, not an injury casualty.

The freshmen.  LSU's stellar freshman have lived up to the hype, so far.  Andre Stringer and Ralston Turner are LSU's leading scorers.  Matt Derenbecker has been hot and cold, but he is a capable seventh man.  Jalen Courtney is a young guy who won't get a lot of minutes this year, but if he develops, he can be a Storm Warren-like player.

Balance.  Nobody on LSU's roster is playing over 30 minutes per game on average.  That's a good thing.  With capable reserves like Derenbecker, Ludwig, Bass, Green and Populist, LSU has been able to spell the main five.  This ensures that they don't get worn down as the season progresses.  Dennis Harris coming back means LSU gets even more quality bench minutes.

And now the bad news-

Turnovers.  LSU has an assists-to-turnovers ratio of 0.80, which is actually worse than last year's 0.89, which was not a very good rate to begin with.  This is a very young team, of course, but the Tigers just won't be as good as they can be if they keep turning over the ball like this.  And everybody's guilty here.

Fouls.  LSU is 263rd in the nation in Fouls.  The last thing the Tigers need is to give up free points.

Storm Warren.  Not that he's playing BAD, but while everybody else has improved over last year, Storm seems to have regressed.  A year after averaging 11.8 points per game, Storm's averaging just 7 right now, and considering the weak competition we've played, that average should be a lot higher.  He has more weapons around him, true, but his field goal percentage has tumbled from .536 to .463, and his points per shot from 1.39 to 1.04.  He's still a great blocker and a consistent rebounder, but he still gets into foul trouble often, and that's discouraging considering he's supposed to be a team leader.  He needs to step up.

Statistics suggest that this LSU team isn't all that bad, but the few things we're not good at- assists, not turning the ball over, fouls- hurt us too much.  It's time for LSU to stop making those mistakes, get over the hump, and become a good team.  Can they do it?

I just wanted to thank LSU Athletics, Coach Les Miles and the LSU Tigers for the wonderful 4 years of football I've gotten to enjoy in Tiger Stadium.  I'm proud to say that I attended every home game since 2007.

At Tiger Stadium, I saw 24 wins and 5 losses.  There's been joy and there's been heartbreak, and thank God there's been much more joy than heartbreak.  Tonight was a bittersweet moment.  The win was sweet.  The fact that I probably won't be returning to Tiger Stadium for awhile is bitter, but I'll sign up for the season ticket waiting list as soon as I can.

Once again, thanks to everybody involved for making this a special time for me.  Geaux Tigers!

via i.imgur.com

That's me, Jrlz, holding up the "Jefferswag" sign behind Desmond Howard at College GameDay in Atlanta.  I had been using it earlier, but this, I believe, was the moment when "Jefferswag", which I had been using amongst my friends since the season prior, gained infamy.

WHY, did I begin this trend, you ask?  Well... I have absolutely no idea.  Oh well.  But next time Jefferswag pops into your head (it happens), be sure to thank me.

UPDATE: WatsonTiger wants props for making it popular.  Thanks, WT.

December 8, 1988- November 16, 2010

Here lies LSU's 82-game win streak against in-state opponents in the PMAC.

All streaks must come to an end, but Nicholls State?  Even last year's team was able to beat Nicholls State.

I was not there to see it.  I'll be recapping by the box score, but this game could not have been anything less than the most EXCRUCIATING loss in recent memory.

Losing to Nicholls State is unacceptable.  There is absolutely NO reason why Nicholls State should have a better team than us.  This is a loss that will call into question the future of LSU basketball AND the future of coach Trent Johnson.  We lost to Nicholls State.  NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!

Let's look at the game:

LSU had 18 turnovers.  Nicholls State had 8.  That'll do it.  Simply put, we're not playing good basketball.  We are committing fouls, turning the ball over, not making plays, not rebounding on the offensive glass, not stealing.  Now a young team is expected to make mistakes like these, but how could our veterans play so poorly?

The biggest disappointment has to be Malcolm White, who turned the ball over three times and fouled thrice, all in just 10 minutes of action, in which he managed just 2 points and 2 rebounds.  Eddie Ludwig wasn't much better.  Aaron Dotson turned the ball over 4 times and fouled 4 times.  Perhaps the most shocking statistical dud tonight Daron Populist.  I don't want to pick on a walk-on, but he turned the ball over 3 times and fouled 4 times- all in just 7 minutes on the court.

Nobody gets off easy after a loss to Nicholls State, but Storm Warren did have a solid game, with 8 points, 14 rebounds and 3 steals (LSU's only 3 steals on the night.  Nicholls State had 12).  Matt Derenbecker and Andre Stringer led the way with 14 points apiece.  Both of them sank 3 shots from behind the arc.  Derenbecker grabbed 6 rebounds, while Stringer added 3 assists.  Stringer didn't turn the ball over and didn't foul.  Ralston Turner had a solid but unremarkable day.  Garrett Green deserves a nod for his 4 rebounds in 5 minutes of play without a turnover.

But none of the players should hold their heads up high.  LSU needs to get better, and get better fast if it wants to finish somewhere other than last in the SEC this year.  As for right now, well, this is embarrassing.

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...so don't make any assumptions about the season based on one game.  Sure, it wasn't pretty, despite some great performances by Andre Stringer, Ralston Turner and Aaron Dotson.  Sure, there's a lot of guys that need to play better.  But I hear a lot of grumbling about players (particularly Eddie Ludwig) whom people think will never be any good.  And to that I say hold your goddamn horses.

Friday night was not Eddie Ludwig's finest performance.  He did score 4 points with his still-gorgeous free-throw shot, and he did grab three steals to outdo his 2 turnovers, but he fouled out after just 18 minutes on the floor.  Despite his foul trouble, he needs to play more aggressively.  He did not attempt a field goal.  On one play, Andre Stringer tried passing the ball to Eddie wide open in the paint, but Eddie wasn't ready, and the ball went out of bounds for a turnover.  That's the kind of thing that he needs to be ready for.  He also made a bad in-bounds pass.

Speaking of Andre, the rookie had 21 points, sank 4 3-pointers and gathered 5 assists and 3 rebounds.  He did have 6 turnovers and 4 fouls, but this is a freshman's first game.  I'd say there's a lot of promise.

Ralston Turner looks like LSU's best player.  He too had 21 points along with 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals, but he didn't nearly have problems with turnovers or fouls that the others had.

As for the other rookies, Matt Derenbecker did little with his six minutes while Jalen Courtney made a nice basket on 3 minutes.  I didn't see either of these guys play in the second half, and I wasn't too sure about that decision because Jalen looked good and the sooner we get D-beck going, the better.

Malcolm White and Garrett Green both played well at center.  White scored 12 points, nabbed 4 rebounds and blocked 3 shots, while Garrett Green sank his only field goal and led the Tigers with 6 rebounds.  White had 4 turnovers and 4 personal fouls, while Green limited mistakes to 1 turnover and 2 PFs.

Aaron Dotson played very well, and, yeah, he's a new man out there.  He made all 5 of his field goals, shot 7-8 from the line, got 2 steals, 3 boards and a blocked shot, while only turning it over once.  It looks like Trent Johnson's patience with Dotson's struggles will pay off for the Tigers.

Defense was another story.  NSU's Will Pratt played great all night, essentially carrying the Demons with 29 points, 5 boards and 5 steals.  The demons didn't shoot wonderfully, but they did get 21 offensive rebounds, and were able to capitalize on that.

LSU needs to play better at the boards.  The Tigers also need to stop turnovers (we had 25 total compared to NSU's 17) and limit personal fouls (30).  NSU shot just 13-27 from the line.  Other teams won't be as bad.

But LSU has young talented guys who can shoot the three.  Offensively, we're loads better than we were last year, but LSU is not a complete team yet.  But, once again, it's the first game of the season.

I know I'm late for this one.  I won't be able to make it to the next game against Nicholls State (cue Soviet jokes) so forgive me if I recap based on the box score. 

I'm at the PMAC.  You're following on LSUsports.net's Geaux Zone or on 100.7 FM.

LSU is rocking an 81-game win streak against in-state foes that dates back to December 8, 1988.  I'd hate for that streak to get snapped.

Bachman-Turner Overdrive- You Ain't Seen Nothin Yet (via GermanMatje)

B-b-b-baby you've ain't seen n-n-nothin' yet.  Seriously, we haven't seen anything yet.

I wouldn't recommend shades quite yet, but the future looks bright.  True freshmen scored 44 of the scrimmage's 96 total points.  Ralston Turner led the way with 21 followed by Matt Derenbecker's 13.  Those two were the game's scoring leaders.  Andre Stringer got 6 points on a pair of 3 point shots while Jalen Courtney got 4 points.

Ralston just looks terrific, but the others, including D-Beck, showed a few areas where they need to improve..  Derenbecker had a terrific first half, but struggled towards the end of the game.  I'd like to see him have a little more hustle, but you can tell the talent is there.  Stringer is another guy where you can really see the talent bubbling, but it took him awhile to get his shot going.  When it finally went in, it was beautiful.  His heave at the end of the half was Gordon Haywardesque in its closeness.  Jalen Courtney has a lot of strength.

Let's not judge any of these frosh right away.  Their journey is only beginning.

The most pleasant surprise of the night was Aaron Dotson, who looked better than ever, scoring 12 points, including 2-3 shooting from the arc while also dishing out 5 assists.  The Tigers will be a lot stronger with him at full speed.

Malcolm White literally ended the game with a huge backboard-bending slam.  He finished with 9 points and a game-high 9 rebounds.  Dennis Harris looked fine with 11 points and 8 rebounds, and Eddie Ludwig had 5 points and 3 rebounds.  Garrett Green was unable to score, but did get 7 rebounds.

It appears that we're going 3-guard with a starting 5 of (TBA Point Guard), Turner, Dotson, Warren and White.  Derenbecker will be backup for both Turner and Dotson, Harris will be Storm's main reserve, and Ludwig will be the main backup for White.  That's my latest guess.

As ATVS's main basketball guy, it's time for me to become useful again on this here blog.  Here are 5 questions about this year's team that I figure need some examining.

1.  Who's the team leader?

The Tigers have no seniors this year.  There are four juniors, but only two of them are expected to start.  Not one of these guys is a bona-fide star, and outside of Andrew Del Piero, who leads the SEC in height, it's doubtful that anybody here is going to lead the SEC in any of the individual stats.  But no team is complete without some leadership, so somebody has to step up.  Remember, it could be anybody, be it Storm Warren, Aaron Dotson, Garrett Green, a freshman, etc.  Somebody just needs to stand up and say something to get people pumped.

My best guess is that LSU's team leader will be the player who joined Coach Johnson at SEC Basketball Media Days: Malcolm White.  The junior transfer from Ole Miss will finally get to play after watching the wreckage from the bench last season.  I bet he can't wait to help.

But still, it takes more than one guy to lead a team.  Look at last year- Taz did all he could, but he couldn't do it alone.  Look for Chris Bass and Eddie Ludwig to be more vocal this year.

2.  Will Aaron Dotson emerge this year?

The Times-Pic's Jim Kleinpeter wrote an article last week hyping up a new and improved Aaron Dotson.  It gives fans like me hope for the future, and a few explanations for Dotson's struggles last year...

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The bracket you see here is not quite accurate.  This will be explained below.

via sports.cbsimg.net

The biggest news in hoops this off-season is that the number of teams in the tournament has been increased from 65 to 68.

The new NCAA tournament is made up of 31 automatic bids and 37 at-large berths.

The automatic qualifiers are the winners of each of the 30 conference tournaments plus the Ivy League's regular season conference champion.  The at-large berths are awarded to the teams the NCAA selection committee deems the best 37 of the remaining field.

Now, all these teams are ranked, roughly, from first to 68.  The last dozen of these teams are always automatic qualifiers from weak conferences like the Big South, the Northeast, etc.  Back when there was 65 teams, the bottom two of these teams, 64 and 65, got their own matchup, and the winner would face a #1 seed team.  That was the "play-in game".  

This year, there will be four play-in games ("the First Four", which will be played at the University of Dayton Arena in Dayton, Ohio), and not all of these games are the same.

Two of these play-in games will be played between the last four automatic qualifiers, teams 65 through 68.  The winners of these two games will face a #1 seed team, a set-up similar to the play-in game that we've known for many years.

The other two "first four" games?  That's where things get interesting.  You know how they always talk about the "last four teams in" when March nears?  They are referring to the last four teams to receive at-large berths.  These teams usually get inserted as #13 or #14 seeds.  Now, these "last four in" get their own two play-in games, but the winners of these two games will not face a #1 seeded team, but rather, a #3 or #4 seed team, and where these two play-in games will be placed on the bracket will be determined by the selection committee when the time comes.

So the bracket pictured above isn't exactly accurate.  Two of the play-in winners will indeed face a #1 seed, but the other two play-in winners will face a #3 or #4 seed.  The actual bracket we will see come March will be a little odder looking than you're used to, but the two at-large "First Four" games promise to deliver a couple of intriguing matchups that will get everybody warmed up for Madness.

These changes have a ripple effect on the rest of the tournament.  The fields of 64 and 32, previously referred to as the first round and the second round respectively, will now be called the second round and the third round.  So now you have:

First Four (last four automatic bids, last four at-large berths)

Second Round (field of 64)

Third Round (field of 32)

Sweet Sixteen

Elite Eight

Final Four (at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas)

So, do you like the change?  If you were Czar of the NCAA, how would you lay out college basketball's postseason?

Also, "Drive for 65" is obsolete.  "Skate for 68"?  Any other suggestions?

Has been mentioned:

Les Miles is insane.

Les Miles is insanely lucky.

Les Miles has a deal with the devil or some shit.

Patrick Peterson.

Hasn't been mentioned:

Jarrett Lee's vengeance in the swamp.

Terrance Toliver's career game, game-winning TD, and that other TD where he dragged preseason favorite Janoris Jenkins to the endzone.

Josh Jasper made a heads-up play after a bad pitch, which is why he's one of the best kickers in the nation.

Drake Nevis, statistically, is having a better season than Ndamukong Suh was having at this point last season.

Tyrann Mathieu is the best defensive freshman in the SEC.

LSU has the SEC's best defense, and is top 5 in the nation.

Defense wins championships.

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via vmedia.rivals.com

Johnny O'Bryant, a 6-9, 235 big man from Cleveland, Mississippi, committed today to play for LSU.  Rivals has him as the #8 Power Forward in the nation and the #38 overall prospect.

This is big, surprising, great news for a 2011 hoops class that nobody expected to be anything more than John Isaac.

I've watched a few of his highlight reels, and I haven't seen a single dunk.  Instead, he gets the job done with lay-ups and put-ins.  He's got great touch in the paint, and that can make a huge difference- you can't just wait for easy dunk opportunities.  Rivals also says he has "as strong a motor as any big man in the country".

He also has an Irish name.  If he was from Mobile, I'd call him "The Leprechaun".

via image.cdnl3.xosnetwork.com

Zach Kinsley has been beaten, apparently.  Walk-on tryouts were yesterday (dang, I missed them!) and Zach Kinsley is not on the roster.  This Austin, Texas native, however, is.

Despite having virtually no known basketball history (his listed EXP is "Unk" which I believe stands for "Unknown"), it's pretty obvious why Trent chose him.

Andrew Del Piero is listed at 7-1, obviously making him a center.  Having seen him around the School of Music (he plays tuba), I could have sworn he was taller than that.  I'm no carnival weight-guesser, but I'd wager that he's at least 250-260.

If Andrew Del Piero becomes even slightly successful on the court, it will give LSU an incredible feel-good story.  At the very least, Del Piero is a very big man who, when needed, can stand around the paint and be tall for a minute or two while the other centers get a breather.  He probably has a lot of basketball things to learn and re-learn, but as Coach Johnson has said, "You can't coach or teach seven-foot."

One thing's for sure- I found a new favorite walk-on (sorry, Daron. Nothing personal) and Mr. Del Piero will be the toast of the School of Music for the rest of the season.

EDIT: Unconfirmed, but this is a video of the band leaving Bama after the game last season. It's pretty obvious which one is Andrew

Now here's a little something I'm gonna do each week before a game, similar to what I did on my now-defunct LSU-miscellanea blog Save Toonces- search out the interesting alumni of our opponent and post 'em here.

Andy Griffith (Bachelor of Music, 1949)

Occupation: Entertainer, Actor

Famous for: The Andy Griffith show, in which he played the role of Andy Taylor, Sheriff of Mayberry. Also, this beloved comedy monologue on football from 1953.

Related: Don Knotts, aka Barney Fife, did not go to college, but was born and raised in Morgantown, West Virginia, the home of a certain other school we'll be facing this year.  Ron Howard, who was Opie before he became an Academy Award-winning director (A Beautiful Mind), is a USC film school dropout.

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I am clothed in peace.  Farewell, Zach Lee.

EDIT: Might as well use it one last time.

No, I don't know what Zach Lee is going to do tonight.  But if he chooses to take the money and run, I am going to take it like a man and say "oh... bummer".  I am not going to scream, cry, flip out, kick a door, or anything.

You know why?  Because LSU baseball and LSU football are both larger than this one kid, and this one kid's decision to leave is not going to destroy these two programs.

LSU baseball and LSU football combined have twenty-seven SEC titles and nine national titles.  And Zach Lee would not be the first talented athlete to snub LSU, and you know what?  We still have twenty-seven SEC titles and nine national titles.  If Zach Lee chooses to go, there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.  There will be more heat on Miles, who will have no "QB of the future" tabbed.  Paul Mainieri will scramble to scrape together a pitching staff.  But tomorrow, we'll still have two killer programs.  Those twenty-seven SEC titles and nine national titles are not going to just disappear from the shelves and from our memories.

If Zach stays, shout "hooray!" and be happy for a guy that is going to have a hell of a time representing two historically great programs.  But if he chooses to go, don't clothe yourself in woe.  Clothe yourself in peace.  And more importantly, clothe yourself in purple and gold.  LSU will survive the Zachocalypse whether he stays or goes.