FEINSWOG: LSU didn’t open up its offense against Auburn, it simply played better
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| Tigers in a good place through seven games
Brandon LaFell keeps his eyes on the prize. (Photo by Gail Chisum)
By LEE FEINSWOG
Tiger Rag Featured Columnist
Now, finally, we have a week in which LSU football fans can relax and think about how well their Tigers are doing instead of how awful their trip to Alabama will be.
Seriously.
LSU lost to Florida by 10 points. LSU had a tremendous defensive effort but it was not enough in a game that hardly anyone expected the Tigers to win.
And then there was a bye week, so that meant two solid weeks of woe-is-the-offense talk and Alabama’s-gonna-kill-us gibberish.
What a difference one Saturday makes for a fan.
First, Alabama struggles to hold off Tennessee, and suddenly top-ranked Alabama is beatable and not as good as everyone thought and, hey, maybe LSU has a chance in Tuscaloosa on November 7.
And then a couple of hours later, LSU completely smothers Auburn, rolling on offense and continuing to show its defense is right up there with anyone’s.
With Tulane up next for the Tigers, LSU is looking at 7-1 three-fourths of the way through the schedule.
Headed, of course, to Alabama.
One can only imagine what talk-radio and internet chatter in the state of Alabama will be like this week.
Auburn, once 5-0, has suddenly fallen off a cliff, and the schedule pretty much dictates the other Tigers are going to finish 6-6, 7-5 at best.
Alabama, still unbeaten, has logged victories in its last three games by scores of 22-3, 20-6 and 12-10. Obviously Tide fans will be distraught over the lack of offense and see the end of the world nearing as they go through a bye week preparing for LSU. A week off means more time for despair.
A top-level LSU official said the week before - BEFORE! - LSU played then-No. 1 Florida, he got an email from a fan hoping that LSU had a list ready to explore the hiring of a new coach.
Seriously.
Last week, I heard one Baton Rouge talk-radio host threatening what would happen with LSU fans if LSU didn’t open up its offense.
I heard and read LSU fans slamming Les Miles because of LSU’s offense, questioning, of course, his football knowledge, but also his manhood. That was happening of course while their team was 5-1 with only one tough loss on its record.
By the way, LSU didn’t open up its offense against Auburn. It simply played better.
Having a week off after Florida was obviously good for young quarterback Jordan Jefferson. Save one fumble that cost a touchdown, the kid did well, probably having his best game of the season. He ran well and continued to make accurate passes and good decisions.
But LSU only rushed for 160 yards, with 69 of those coming on one play, a TD by speedy Russell Shepard, whom fans have been clamoring to get more touches. That one run was spectacular, but have it noted that Sheppard’s other five carries netted two yards. And Charles Scott carried 10 times for 20 yards. Clearly the LSU rushing game remains a problem.
All that being said, LSU is in a good place.
While it gets no style points for beating Washington (now 3-5), escaping Mississippi State (also 3-5) or nipping Georgia (3-3), and take note that Vanderbilt is now 2-6, LSU nonetheless has its own fate in its own hands.
Lowly Tulane (2-5) comes to Tiger Stadium on Saturday and you can bet the LSU rushing game will prosper and get back on track at least for that game. After LSU goes to Alabama, Louisiana Tech visits Baton Rouge and former LSU assistant Derek Dooley’s squad, now 3-4, is likely going to be 3-6 when it gets here.
Then comes the trip to Ole Miss and a home game against Arkansas on the Saturday after Thanksgiving to end the regular season. This past Saturday, Ole Miss (5-2) beat Arkansas (3-4). LSU lost to both of them last season.
The thought here was LSU was going to finish 8-4 this season. That’s not going to happen.
LSU is way better than Tulane and Louisiana Tech. It’s not as good as Alabama, but is better than Ole Miss and way better than Arkansas.
On paper that adds up to a 10-2 finish in a season in which seemingly anything can and will happen in the SEC.
No matter what, at least through Halloween, LSU fans can relax and enjoy the lofty place in which their football team resides, warts and all.
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Baton Rouge sportswriter Lee Feinswog is the host of the weekly television show Sports Monday. He’s the co-author of a new book about LSU football, “What It Means to Be a Tiger.” He’ll also be glad to sell you signed copies of his previous books, “Tales From The LSU Sidelines” and “HoopDaddy.” Contact him at sportsmonday@aol.com or (225) 926-3256.
My best scenario for us going in was 9-3. But, I’m revising that upward to 10-2. With Florida at home, and Bama and Ole Miss on the road, that makes for a tough trek for anyone. We probably “should” lose to Bama in Tuscaloosa, but we may not. And, we should win at Oxford, but we may not. So, 10-2–a bit better than expected on this end.
The loss of Perrilloux, after two years of grooming, still has an impact on this team. The one puzzle to me is the poor run blocking.
David
Disagree with LSU not being as good as Bama. Bama now has a new qb who is struggling with the sec defenses, and a depleted receiving core. They can run, but LSU can stop the run. Ingram didn’t have much success last year against LSU. Alabama is still cleaning out their pants since last we played, and their players know who has the better players. LSU regains it’s rightful place at the top of the SEC, defensively, offensively and special teams.
I believe LSU can win the rest of its games remaining if we continue to improve weekly on offense; defensively I think we can play with anybody in the nation. But we have to maintain our intensity on defense, continue to focus on improving the pass rush and getting off the field on third downs. On offense, LSU will continue to get better on the offensive line and will polish up the line push against Tulane this week. I think Bama will stuff us rushing at the point of attack next week, but I think JJ will run more out of the roll out or shot gun and continue to develop his passing skills deeper downfield. So I expect the passing game to help us stay in those gameas at Bama and Ole Miss. No one expects us to win both but I think it is possible. I think LA Tech will play us tough in a close one. And for some reason, I am more scared of Arkansas than I was at the beginning of the season. Les Miles has had trouble the past several years beating the hogs, so I am more nervous about that game than most fans probably are. In the end, however, I see the tigers losing two more games for a 9-3 record–a definite improvement over 2008.