The defense looked in mid season form and tallied SEVEN takeaways against the overmatched Bulldogs. Looking at the big picture of this season, fans should be very excited about LSU’s chances simply because the defense will give the Tigers an opportunity to win every game, no matter how poorly the offense plays. Steltz was a monster in the secondary and the defensive line is so deep and talented, would anyone be surprised if 6 or 7 of those guys eventually play in the NFL?I’m not really sure what to make of the offense. The play calling was incredibly conservative. LSU didn’t pass on 1st down until very late in the first half when the clock essentially forced Crowton to throw. Nothing was completed further than 10 yards down the field. This was a really different look for the Tigers, a lot of running out of the I-formation with two wide receivers. Reminded me of the days of Gerry DiNardo. (yikes!) It would be unfair and premature to grade the offense at this point. With so many new pieces in place and new coaches on the offensive staff, a shake out period should be expected. Having said that, the offensive line has got to get better. After hearing such good things during fall camp, I was very disappointed in that group.
I did like the fact that Flynn managed the game very well and didn’t have the types of mental mistakes that plagued Russell. He’s not as dynamic and physically talented as Russell, but working with the mindset of “game management,” complimented by a brilliant defense and strong special teams (more on that in a moment), Flynn has the ability to lead LSU to a title. Efficiency and mistake free football will be good enough to win the SEC West.
Special teams were solid. The new punter, Patrick Fisher, was fantastic. He punted 7 times for a 45 yard average. As an interesting side note, LSU didn’t have that many punts in one game all of last season.
Overall, I think fans should be happy with the outcome. 45-0 should keep the bitching to a minimum, at least until next week.
2 comments:
I'd like to be a fly-on-the-wall in the Coaches room down in LSU. I hope they're not patting themselves on the back to much. Hey, on the face of it 45-0 looks great but, the underlying mechanics of that game were a little shaky.
LSU's victory was helped along, of course, by 6 interceptions, 1 fumble (MSU fumbled and recovered that but, it ended a drive) and another outright fumble. Those botches by MSU weren't all forced; it was just the fact that MSU's QB, Henig, was god awful. All in all LSU defense looked better and better as things progressed; they are back! The offense however is quite another story. I know it's only the first game but, they didn't really impress me. The 45 pts they posted were done in a very monotonous, workman like fashion; based on what I saw last night I don't know if they have the ability to *explode* (like if they're down a couple of touchdowns)when needs be. It wasn't until there was 1:42 left in the first half that LSU's offensive unit started firing on all cylinders. Now, I know VT has a somewhat suspect offense but, their defense, on paper, looks a good as ever and if LSU fiddle f--- around for almost a half against VT they are going to be in deep s--- ... SEC or no SEC home field advantage. All that said, LSU is 1-0 and week 1 is history ... Geaux Tigers!!!
I agree that the Tigers' offensive line needs work. Three sacks against any team is bad; three sacks against an obviously mismatched Mississippi State squad in nigh inexcusable.
Correction of offensive line's problem is critical because, while Virginia Tech's offense was FLAT against ECU, its defense played up to its preseaon billing.
Doubtlessly, LSU's defense has the ability to stymie Tech's offense, especially if the Hokies are as lackluster as they were on Saturday. Tech's defense, however, has the capability both to disrupt LSU's offense and to score points.
Playing in Baton Rouge will be a new experience for the boys from Blacksburg, but they have played in front of fanatic home crowds before--and come away victorious.
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