quote:
To be fair his 2012 season(58%compl 12tds/7ints) wasnt as productive as his 2013 season. I believe that if he wouldve had a decent 2012 season then he would by higher on lsu fan's affinity list.

I would easily classify his 2012 season as decent.

As already mentioned, the OL was pretty bad that year and Odell and Jarvis were not nearly what they became in 2013. They were both plagued by drops early in the year. Mett was solid and grinded out gutsy performances early in the year to make that O work as well as it could without much help. I don't think he gets enough credit for that.

Even in the UF game, he did all he could against a great great Gator D with no protection and little help from the WRs. Odell's fumble on that amazing 50+ yard pass play probably sealed our fate that day, just like the fumble against UGA in 2013

The entire O really hit its stride after the bye week and was pretty on fire in the month of November, if you can believe that after our recent November skids.

The reason Mett is under appreciated, and I'm not one who does this for the record, he was a much needed oasis between the deserts of JJ/Lee and AJ/BH, is because the team didn't win anything of any significance under him.

Arguably, his two most impressive performances came in losses, against Bama in 2012 and UGA in 2013. Other than TCU, which was huge at the time but ultimately was forgotten as a week 1 OOC game that meant nothing in the long run and TCU ended up being pretty awful that year, he really doesn't have a signature win.

Sure he had some nice stat games, but mainly against weaker SEC teams like Miss State, and his stinker in Oxford that cost us the game really felt like the end of what should have been a special 2013 season before we even got to the Bama showdown.

Even in what should have been a big bowl matchup against a clearly up and coming Clemson team, most of our fans were so bummed with how the season played out that's no one really gave that game the excitement it deserved. And after that great November, the O completely didn't show up, and Mett wiffed on a simple pass that should have sealed the win at the end, but instead gave them the chance for the game winning drive, which they pulled off.

So while all the plays in that reel are great and fun to watch, his career just doesn't have a GAME that stands out as a classic to remember him by, and not necessarily of his own fault.

Even with a guy like LF, we didn't win anything under his era either, but he had several significant wins and games that stand out to solidify his status in Tiger history. Grinding out a huge win over top 5 Ole Miss and storming the field, monster performances in two huge wins over Florida and a gutsy road over MSU to open SEC play against Dak in 2015, dismantling Auburn and South Carolina, and even a highlight reel game over Syracuse. He also had a monster game in a big bowl win against TTech and also showed out on another bowl stage against Notre Dame even though we lost. And of course he dominated A&M in 2014 and 2015, with the latter providing a classic image of Les being carried off the field.

Arguably, while there were some fun games under Mett, I'd say the moment that best captures that two year window under him is the end of the Bama game in 2013, when he was hurt and crawling off of the field in pain with the OL just standing by watching.

It sucks, but that summed up that post 2011 Rematch era, just a helpless and frustrating era that signaled the end of the glory days under Miles.

Not exactly the kind of moment that lends itself to being fondly remembered.

I rank him just behind JR, Davey, Mauck, Flynn, Hodson and Tyler in my time of LSU QBs, which isn't anything to be ashamed of, but really doesn't put him above anyone of note.

Loved him for finally having some fireworks on offense again though. It was needed.

ETA: Holy shite, TLDR

I'm in that reflective end of year holiday mood

This post was edited on 12/24/16 at 5:34 am