As you know by now the Tigers defeated the Huskies in Seattle Saturday night. You would think that the LSU faithful would be happy with a win but as usual they are never satisfied. The Tiger held a two touchdown lead until literally the last second of the game where the Huskies scored on a short pass.
The biggest complaint coming from Tiger fans was the lack of defensive play. Many criticize the defense for allowing a team that did not win a game last year to remain so close during the game. These fans may have a valid point. The team did not perform extraordinary for the contest but I believe that they held their own. They missed a few tackles and the fleet footed Locker was able to roll out of the pocket and complete passes at will in third down situations.
There is another side to the game. I like to look at the glass half full instead of being the eternal pessimist as many LSU fans tend to be. First of all we WON the game! That's all that matters in the end. We had several players that played outstanding and deserve credit for their accomplishments. A few of them are Patrick Peterson, Jacob Cutrera, Jordan Jefferson, Terrence Tolliver, Perry Riley, Keiland Williams and Harry Coleman. These players stepped up and gave a glimpse of what the Tigers will be this season.
Patrick Peterson had 7 tackles and several broken pass plays. He will be a first rounder in a few years. Cutrera had an interception that he returned for a touchdown. Jordan Jefferson showed that he will be the leader for the team by having a great day running and throwing the ball. He completed 59% of his passes and ran for many yards. Tolliver caught two Touchdown passes and is expected to have a breakout year.
The Tiger will face Vanderbilt in Tiger Stadium this Saturday night at 6:00 pm. I expect this game to be a little more to the fan bases liking. I also expect Coach Miles to use the tools that he has in Russell Sheppard and Rueben Randle. The defense will play more man and we may see a few changes at the defensive line positions.
You can assuredly believe that Coach Chavis will have made the corrections from the UDub game and his Tiger defense will come ready to play the Commodores. I'm expecting the Bayou Bengals to Beat Vandy by 3 scores. It will be a hyped night in Death Valley. See you at the game! Geaux Tigers!
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Nice blog, CenLA. Props to the Tigers for having the stones to travel to Washington for a season-opening road game.
I thought the score would be more lopsided, but nice to see the UW players circling this date on a calendar to measure the offseason progress.
Who knows, this road win may eventually fall into the "quality ooc win" category, like when PSU beat Oregon State who later surprised a lot of people, including USC.
PSUinHolidaySpirit
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Nice work, CenLA. What are your thoughts about the idea that Le Smiles was holding back his new wrinkles for the SEC foes? Lots of fans make this statement when an early game is not up to their liking, and I've got a few local Tiger fans saying this is the case. What do you think?
I thought LSU was rusty to start, and UDub came out ready to play like a home team should, but LSU kept at it and got it done when it counted. Like you said, they got the W and for the first game, don't knock it.
GatorRobster
Houston, TX
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Everybody has their opines about the defense. God knows I wanted to puke myself @ the missed tackles, but bodies were there. That's a good sign.
I think after all the dust settles, maybe the fanbase will realize that LSU faced a duo of former USC coaches - offensive and defensive coordinators, along w/ a stable of good players in that Washington team, in the Pacific Northwest. Washington will win a few games this season.
The Vandy game, and by extension Washington, is the litmus test.
Gonzeaux
Total Comments (413)
They did hold a little back but not by choice. The game was not conducive to include new players as much as they wanted. They kept it vanilla.
They ran only 48 plays. The least LSU has run since 1965.
CenLA Tiger
Tigerland, LA
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The crowd was pretty crazy, for sure. The TV camera shots were shaking the first few minutes of the game, and I assume it was due to the crowd going wild -- something LSU fans are VERY familiar with. It was not a good environment to toss newbies/freshmen into, loud, crazy, and on the road.
GatorRobster
Houston, TX
Total Comments (3623)
CenLA Tiger:
Very good blog, but I was surprised to see LSU allowing 478 yards under any circumstances and against a team that went 0-12 last year. To be honest, I was very concerned and I think I am probably one of those negative fans you are talking about but I have seen many LSU seasons go south on us especially after the coach coaches 4-5 years. I was expecting Chavis to have things working better after having all Spring and all Fall to get that defense put together. We will have to see how they play this weekend as I think the Vandy will help show us what kind of a team LSU will have this year.
Bullday
Baton Rouge , LA
Total Comments (394)
I agree. Saturday will go a long way in showing us where the Tigers stand. I'm at Ft. Polk this weekend for a course and BETTER get out in time to see the game. Here's why I am optimistic about the defense.
- This was their first live shot at the new scheme
- They have seen what works and what doesn't (scheme and players)
- They have had time to review the tapes and make the adjustments
- We have recent tape on Vandy
- We are in Tiger Stadium
- The game starts at 6:00 pm
- They've been listening to the talk all week and want to make it right
I truely think that they will get in Vandy's grill.
CenLA Tiger
Tigerland, LA
Total Comments (3776)
Good points by Bullday and CenLA. We will know by 9pm, Bros.
Gonzeaux
Total Comments (413)
Vandy hung around waaaay too long, especially for a night game in BR - now the question becomes, is Vandy better-than-expected, or is it the other way around? I didn't get to see it, so I have no opinion, but would like to hear from those that were able to see the game.
GatorRobster
Houston, TX
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Gonzeaux and Bullday. You now have blogging privelages on this blog if you so desire to contribute
CenLA Tiger
Tigerland, LA
Total Comments (3776)
Defense held them to 210 yards so that was a huge improvement over last week. If you didn't watch the game then you didn't see the rain. Also, Les ran out the clock when we could have scored again.
Vandy scored in the second quarter. That was it. You tell me.
CenLA Tiger
Tigerland, LA
Total Comments (3776)
Thank You, Cen. From 450+ yards to 200+ yards is a remarkable improvement, including weather conditions. I am encouraged.
Vanderbilt always is a scrappy team early on and well-coached. They did lose 2 players to injury. That kinda bums me out because I like seeing Bobby Johnson do well and depth does affect their season. Washington beat the Potatoes 42-23, but I think they were looking ahead to USC. If they upest USC this weekend, I think I'll take a victory shot for Steve S.
And I'll enjoy it.
Gonzeaux
Total Comments (413)
And I did.
Enjoy it, Fellas.
Gonzeaux
Total Comments (413)
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