THE GOOD The defense showed up to play hard-nosed LSU football. Terrence Magee was the leading rusher and leading receiver and had a big return. 14 yards a carry and 220 all-purpose yards. This team is starting to get it. Beckwith had a bad first two drives, but you could see him getting better as the game went on and he finished with 9 tackles. Peveto's special teams rocked. Big returns, long punts, long kickoffs, and a kickoff recovery. Hunter had a hell of a game with two batted passes and two tackles for losses. The offensive line worn down the Kentucky defense, they were out of gas with 10 minutes left in the 4th quarter. White finally busted a big TD punt return. Delahoussaye became the most accurate field goal kicker in LSU history (95.2%) LSU will be going to a bowl game. Big pass to a tight end! Jennings is learning to stand in the pocket and get the pass off. THE BAD Fournette rushed for 2.8 yards a carry and just didn't follow his blocking. Any time Fournette was in the game, Kentucky put nine men in the box. Off tackle left on every first down is fooling nobody and isn't working either. Jennings still stares down his primary receiver and fails to see wide-open alternates. Quinn was open a lot and never saw the ball. We must have better passing to staying the game with Bama and Ole Miss. Neither quarterback seems really ready for prime time. THE UGLY Kentucky's gray-vest jerseys. Gawd.
Overall the good list is getting bigger than the bad list which is a positive, but the passing game is still butt ugly! Special teams would be listed on the better than good list last night. They had a huge positive impact on the game.
I have to give the coaches big props. The D is really starting to improve. The kids are flying to the ball. The tackling is improving. The play on the DL and LB are really improving. Hunter and Rasco are becoming play makers. Great to see the team showing some improvement on D. The play of Magee was a huge boost. However Fournette had no chance. The OL was not making holes until the second half. The play calling was very predictable when Fournette was in there. I do feel we must improve the play calling to compete with Ole Miss and Bama. We can not be so predictable. While Harris may make more mistakes he gives LSU the best chance to win. It is clear though that AJ is Miles' guy. Harris should have been give more of a chance to play than just mop up duty. He has lead the team to far more TD's by percentage. AJ holds the ball too long. We have open guys, as mentioned, Quinn is often open. AJ mainly looks for Dural and that is it. Overall, an excellent performance by the players and coaches against a solid Kentucky team.
I still don't see why people think Harris gives LSU the best chance to win. What crazy ass tea leaves are giving people that notion?
Did you see Teuhema come in on obvious passing downs? True freshman 232-pound DE came in at nose tackle with two defensive ends to get some pass rush. Another true freshman is starting at DT. When these guys learn the game, they are going to be good.
I really like what I've seen when Teuhema is in the game. He certainly flys to the ball, he is a heat seeker. He could be a great rover that you can line up at DE, DT, or OLB. Bower is also coming around when he is given PT. LaCouture is starting to get some penetration as well. We would be remissed if we didn't mention Jamal Adams. That kid is going to be a superstar.
Because he does not hold the ball. He will spread the ball around. AJ mainly looks for only Dural. Also, lets look the TD's per drives comparisons. I think he has done enough to at least be given a fair opportunity for game time action. LSU needs to be more diverse than last night to beat Ole Miss or Bama. We won't wear down their DL's come the second half like we did Kentucky.
There was an off season thread asking who would be the breakout star on the team. I made 1 post. Guess who
I just don't get why Miles/Cameron want to get so predictable in their calls. That goes against any reasonable tactic in playing this game.
