In retrospect, maybe we should have seen it coming. LSU had only three starters on the field from last season's national title game. New faces were all over the field and on the sidelines. Mike Leach has a senior QB to run his highly successful Air Raid offense. Regardless, Saturday may have been one of the worst defensive performances in LSU history. Let's break it all down.
Offense
* Miles Brennan was a little disappointing. He finished with 345 yards and 3 TD's, but he never seemed comfortable or in command. Maybe I expected too much after Joe Burrow. In his defense, it was his first start and he was harried all game long. The running game was only moderately effective. The receivers dropped some passes. I do think there is room for Brennan to grow. He will improve as the season goes along and I expect him to be one of the better QB's in the league by the end of the season.
* The offensive line was poor. Brennan was sacked seven times. Some of them were on him, but there were a number of free rushers or linemen just getting beat in their one on one assignments. The run game improved in the second half, but there is a lot of work to be done.
* The receivers were a mixed bag. I believe Terrance Marshall (#6) had two drops, the most critical was on LSU's last drive. Jaray Jenkins (#10) was a very nice surprise. For all the hype we heard about Arik Gilbert (#2), I didn't see it. He dropped the first pass thrown his way and his blocking was awful at times. He's a true freshman and I know he will get much better, but that was far from a great start.
* Going into this game under Coach O, LSU was 31-3 when they gained more than 400 yards of total offense and 36-1 when scoring more than 30 points. LSU did both yet still lost by 10.
Defense
* Ali Gaye (#11) had a really nice game at his defensive end position. He finished with three total tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack. He also batted down multiple passes and brought pressure throughout the game. Jabril Cox (#19) also played well. He made a great play on a Costello pass which resulted in a pick six for the Tigers.
* LSU is number 1 in the country in rushing defense. LSU is also dead last in the country in passing defense.
* LSU will have to give up the mantle of DBU for a while. State did a great job of identifying the Tiger's weakest man in the secondary and went at him. It was a complete debacle across the board. Darren Evans (#26) is completely out of his depth at this level. Eli Ricks (#1) had a nice INT in the second half, but looked like a true freshman for most of the game. Jay Ward (#5) had some nice moments, but he was beaten badly on Costello's final TD pass. Even Cordale Flott (#25), arguably LSU's best corner on the field had a rough outing. JaCoby Stevens (#7) played well. His leadership will be key going forward.
* The LSU defense forced 4 turnovers yet still allowed 44 points.
Special Teams
* No complaints here. Tigers were very effective all game.
LSU goes on the road next week to Vanderbilt. The Commodores gave A&M all they wanted in College Station losing 17-12. I think that game says a lot more about A&M than it does Vandy. Look for lots of improvement on both sides of the ball from the Tigers. Vandy only mustered 255 total yards on offense against the Aggies. Let's see if LSU's defense can rebound. Offensively, let's see if the offensive line can take some steps forward to get the running game going.
Before Saturday, I thought LSU could compete with the top teams in the SEC this season but not win the division. Right now, they look more like a 5-5 team than an 8-2 squad. The Tigers need to rally...quickly. This season will be a real test for coach O.
LSU 38 - Vandy 24
