First, Let’s keep Greg Brooks Jr. in our thoughts and prayers. Brooks underwent brain surgery to remove a tumor last week. He played for Arkansas and transferred to LSU last season. Both teams honored him on Saturday night. PRAYERS UP!
I tried not to rush to conclusions on this LSU game. I was initially very down on our performance, but I listened to my gut and looked a little further. We obviously won, 34-31.
Our offense started very slowly, like tortoise slow. It looked like we were sleepwalking. However, we woke up on our 4th possession and scored every possession thereafter.
Jayden Daniels came through 20 of 29 passing, 320 yards, four touchdowns, and one Interception. Malik Nabors came up big, getting eight catches for 130 yards and two touchdowns. However, I am starting to love seeing Brian Thomas emerging as a true threat. Thomas had five catches, 133 yards, and two touchdowns; having a true number-two receiver is essential going forward.
Now, for the defense, let us start with the good. Major Burns had twelve tackles, Penn had twelve tackles, and Whit Weeks had nine tackles; they all played well for us. D’Shawn Womack – let’s keep an eye out for this true freshman. He had two tackles and one sack in very limited action. Womack sacked the Arkansas quarterback with his helmet off. This kid is way too talented to play so little. Our highlighted player from last week, Andre Sam, had seven tackles and one interception.
The secondary must improve drastically for our Tigers to make a legitimate run at the SEC West title. LSU, known as DBU
( short for Defensive Back University, because a lot of high-performance defensive backs have graduated from the Tigers’ football program), has made its living with press man-to-man corners. We are now playing over 70% zone coverages, which teams are taking full advantage of.
Let’s take a look at who could help. Latterance Welch #27, a sophomore from Lafayette, LA, needs to start seeing action. Last season, Welch showed flashes of being a shutdown corner. He had a great fall camp. I think he could get more opportunities very soon.
There is a lot of bad defensive film to watch for the coaches; changes need to be made. On the road this week against Ole Miss, we should dominate in the trenches. Look for a powerful Tiger running attack and hope the defensive line dominates like it should. In the secondary, we need to see a major step forward this week. If we can get this secondary to be just average, it will go a long way.