A Win is a Win, No Matter How Ugly...

LINK

I was slightly heated after last nights game. Questioning play calling and why we didn't put state away like I thought we should. Watching the replay, and thinking cooled me down.

Also, reading another gem from ATVS helped me see the light too. It's in the link above.

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Let's make one thing real, REAL clear right off the bat. LSU won that damn game. Shoulda-coulda-woulda all you want. Scoreboard. All that matters.

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We'll start right off with the play-calling. Yes, LSU called just 17 passes (counting called passes that resulted in scrambles by Harris) compared to 45 runs. But they also averaged 5.7 yards per carry and 6.2 on first down. So you tell me, did they do what worked? I'm with Poseur -- it DID. LSU averaged 5.5 yards per play. They do that or better, they'll win almost every game they play.

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Formation count (I will try to keep track of this game-to-game): LSU ran 11 personnel (1 back/1 TE/3 WRs) on 24 out of 61 offensive snaps. 19 snaps out of 21 personnel, 4 out of 22 (three in the fourth quarter), and three out of 12 (one back/2 TE). There was also 1 goal-line look and 1 wildcat.

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As for Harris, look he played great, and I would be absolutely stunned if we don't see growth out of the passing game as the season progresses. That was probably the loudest road environment he'll see with the cowbells, and he handled it incredibly well as a manager, getting calls from the sideline, including check-with-mes, and getting in and out of the huddle smoothly. As a passer he did a great job of distributing the ball and going through his progressions. The one complaint I'd have could be on some of the shotgun runs that featured a keep read, but there's no way to know how often he had that latitude. A lot of teams just like to use the action to bluff the backside of the defense without giving the QB the option to keep it.

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Random play I was asked about: Harris converted a third-and-5 slant to Dural for a first, and some noted Dupre running free behind him. From the reverse angle, you could see the safety fly up reading Harris' eyes, which is what left Dupre open. Interesting to see if we see a pump-fake there later on.

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Leonard Fournette...good God kid. I only have so many superlatives I can use, but he was Jeremy Hill-like in his ability to turn on the jets at the exact moment when he was through the hole. LSU was heavy on the zone-stretch plays, and on Fournette's second TD everybody hit their mark. Jerald Hawkins and John David Moore made an alley for a good six or seven yards and 7 did the rest, making a safety miss and taking off.

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To get on my soapbox a bit on Fournette's third score: radio in Baton Rouge -- and I'm looking specifically at Charles Hannagriff and Alan Risher on the postgame show -- have been complaining about "toss lead" for years. Not only is it LSU's best play, but they can't even name the damn thing correctly. A lead is an off-guard isolation run with a fullback. LSU ran POWER-O. In fact, what you saw on this play was an example of what happens if the defense tries to play it like a lead play. They got pinned down inside and gave 7 a huge outside alley. Turned on the jets and boom.

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last one...

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Back to play-calling: Harris saw nine third downs of five yards or more, and that's far too many. Cam Cameron needs to do a much better job of keeping the offense on schedule with some high-percentage throws early on. We saw a little of that with some smoke routes in the second half, but LSU could have called a few more. But if you think what we saw with LSU attempting that few passes is, or will be an every week thing if Harris continues to play like this, you've spent too much time on Tiger Rant. This really came down to timing as much as anything though.

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let's whip some Aubie arse next weekend fellas!