Talk about stinking up the place. LSU was dominated from the get go and only briefly showed any signs of life. The Tigers have many more games to play, but some major improvement is needed before LSU can hope to contend in the West.
The receivers sucked. No other way around it. Mauck wasn’t great, but at least he got sharper as the game went along. His only interception occurred when Carey kicked the ball up in the air after having the pass hit him directly in the hands (maybe he watched too much World Cup this summer?). Clayton dropped at least two, Brezell dropped a catchable pass, Toe dropped two easy ones and Dom Davis dropped a pair. Each drop sucked more and more life from LSU and resulted in more and more drinks for myself. Mauck wasn’t sharp, but he managed the game. No fumbles. Only one interception which wasn’t his fault. He will be a “caretaker” of this offense. Nothing special, but he won’t lose games for the Tigers (a la Josh “you still suck” Booty).
LSU still can’t run the ball with any consistency. The running game didn’t help to get Mauck in manageable 3rd down situations. Which leads me to ask, “what the hell is wrong with the offensive line?” Pass protection was poor especially on passing downs. And what is up with having to burn 3 timeouts in the first half because we can’t get a damn play off? What the hell have we been doing in practice the last month?
The defense actually played fairly well. Virginia Tech couldn’t sustain any drives and only scored on two short drives in the first half. Lavalais was fantastic throughout. I can’t believe we don’t have anyone better than Hookfin at CB. The guy is terrible. He hasn’t gotten any better it seems from last season. I’ll be glad when the guy is gone.
Special teams killed the Tigers. From the punt return for a touchdown which was called back to the two blocked punts, special teams set the tone for the game. I don’t think LSU ever really recovered from the called back TD. Saban commented that LSU’s intensity level was lacking. I have to agree. Some guys were playing scared I suppose.
Having said all that, we still can’t make any definite determinations about the Tigers. LSU has four consecutive games at home and will be favored in all of them. I think the friendly confines of Tiger Stadium will boost the intensity and give some young guys the confidence they need to play well.
If this column seems a bit disjointed and rambling, that’s because it is mirroring Sunday’s game. The more I think about the game the worse I feel. That was about the worst offensive performance I have seen since the last days of Gerry D. Saban in now 4-5 in road games at LSU (excluding bowls and SEC Championship). Wins over Miss. State, Kentucky, Ole Piss and Bama are balanced against losses to Tennessee, Florida, Auburn, Arkansas and now Virginia Tech. Seeing a pattern there? Saban wants to dominate, but until the Tigers can go on the road and beat good teams (like the LSU squads in the mid 80’s), don’t look for anything special.
I heard a quote from someone the other day who said, “God gave us eyes in the front of our heads for a reason.” I hope LSU can put this game behind them and move on. Four consecutive home games will allow LSU to correct the mistakes which marred this game and also (hopefully) get a conference win over MSU.
LSU’s next opponent, the Citadel, is a division I-AA program and won’t be much of a challenge. LSU should hang 50 on them without breaking a sweat. Thanks to playing on Sunday and having Monday off, this short week will let the Tigers get right back in the saddle.
