I have had the occasion to see LSU play quite a few times this year and even though I have seen better Tiger teams in the past, the 2007 team doesn’t have many holes. Beyond the talent, they also have some great leadership on the field in all aspects of the game.
Offensively the Tigers are led by senior QB Matt Flynn who has a lot of confidence in the talent around him. He’s thrown for 17 touchdowns but with 10 int’s he has a tendency to thrown into coverage if pressured. His back up is soph Ryan Perrilloux who is been in and out of the doghouse but plays frequently especially in running downs but throw the ball when asked. Although Flynn calls the plays, the real leader on this offense is fullback Jacob Hester. With over 1000 yards he is obviously a very good runner but it is his dependability that makes him so good. When they need a big play on the ground or in the air, they look for Hester. Most of his teammates have more speed but Hester is undoubtably the go-to guy. Williams and Holliday see the ball out of the backfield too. Williams is a much bigger and more of a pounder, but Holliday is a World Class sprinter and at 5’5” he is tough to find and once you do…….he may be gone. The receivers are all very fast. Led by senior Early Doucet with 50 catches, he missed a few games this year but when Flynn needs a catch downfield, he looks for Doucet. LaFell and Byrd are also pretty good with some of the biggest clutch catches of the year made by Byrd. TE Dickson gets into the mix especially around the goal line but if they do get down there, keep your eyes on #18 Hester. The O line is big and physical led by the whole left side of the line, Johnson at 6’7” 350.
Defensively the Tigers are led by senior/consensus All Am Glen Dorsey. If he is healthy (bad back) he can dominate the line of scrimmage and put a bunch of pressure on TBoeck. With a couple of weeks of rehab, I would expect him to be ALL there. But he is not the only playmaker on the D. All Am senior safety Craig Steltz and senior linebacker Ali Highsmith are both serious football players and can make plays both against the run and in the passing game. The supporting cast are all good athletes with speed and run to the ball. Steltz leads the team in INT’s but senior corners Jackson and Zenon are always a threat to take a chance for a pick 6. Former Buckeye and soon to be Cornhusker Head Coach Bo Pelini does a great job with this talent and has some depth to work with. He is aggressive but always protects his assets. He will pressure TBoeck relentlessly but with a healthy Dorsey, he may not have to release the dogs. Maybe he should get to Nebraska early to start recruiting?!@#$%^&*(
Special Teams have always been pretty good at LSU. This year is no different. Colt David the kicker is 25-32 with a long of 49 and one blocked. Senior punter Patrick Fisher is averaging 44 yards with 12 knocked down inside the 20. The scary part is their returners, especially lil Holliday. have taken one kickoff back to the house and they have run 2 punts back for scores. Because of the Tigers depth at “speed” they cover really well and don’t make many-if any-mental mistakes.
Coaching is a very interesting match up. Les Miles is no slouch when it comes to X’s and O’s and he is a very good motivator. Then you throw in Bo who has a wealth of experience which includes stints in the NFL. Tress knows he is going to be challenged so don’t be surprised that the Bucks change a few things and take a few chances.
This LSU team is very talented and has some very good leadership, but does have the potential to make some mistakes and play to their opponent (UK and Ark). If we look anything like we did last year at this time……well we better duck.
Too soon for a prediction…..let me go back and forth about fifty more times.
GO BUCKS!
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Filed under: Football by Jim Karsatos
Jim Karsatos has written 26 posts. Read other posts by Jim Karsatos.
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