LSU Football: 10 Benchmarks for Spring Success

The LSU Tigers come into the spring as one of the favorites to win the 2013 BCS National Championship, but there's a few things that need to develop this spring before that happens.

Spring ball is a good way of evaluating the talent on the team, and in all honesty, this looks like the most talented LSU football team to date. After all, this is supposed to be "the year."

Before the Tigers go chasing that gold, they need to establish a few goals/benchmarks this spring, and here's what those goals should be.

A Good Quarterback Duel

Iron sharpens iron, and hopefully that'll be the case when Stephen Rivers and Zach Mettenberger compete for the starting position at quarterback.

No one knows how important the quarterback position is more than LSU fans, so a good quarterback duel this spring is imminent.

This year will be a lot different from last year with Jordan Jefferson, though. The Tigers have some real gun-slingers on the team this season in Mettenberger and Rivers.

If they can both succeed this spring and push one another, that will only further better the football team and make them that much better in the fall.

Zach Mettenberger Rises Above All

It's time for Zach Mettenberger to rise to the challenge and take the reigns of this football team.

Last season, he watched from the sideline as Jordan Jefferson turned in one of the worst quarterback performances ever in a championship game, and now, it's his turn to show his talent and lead this team by example.

Reports are that Mettenberger has emerged as a leader so far during spring training, and Tiger fans can't get much more thrilling news than that.

Progression at Wide Receiver

With the loss of Rueben Randle, the Tigers need someone to step up and fill that void.

With Randle absent, the Tigers lose nearly half of their production at wide receiver, as Randle had 917 yards of the Tigers' 2,135 yards receiving. LSU returns Russell Shepard, Odell Beckham Jr., Jarvis Landry, Kadron Boone and James Wright, along with adding Avery Johnson and Travin Dural to the team.

If Landry can reach his full potential, he can be an outstanding player, and Tiger fans have already seen what Shepard and Beckham are capable of doing. Last season, Beckham was second on the team in receiving yards with 475 and Shepard was third with 190.

The receivers have to use this spring to improve and become legitimate threats on the outside for the offense.

Offensive Linemen Stay Healthy

The last thing that needs to happen in spring is to have one of those big hog-mollies upfront get injured.

LSU's offensive line is going to be a strong point of the team in 2012, as they are big, experienced and skilled.

With P.J. Lonergan, Josh Dworaczyk, Alex Hurst, Chris Faulk and Josh Williford all expected to start, they have a total of 105 career starts between all of them.

With players like 6'5", 320-pound Vadal Alexander and 6'5" 320-pound La'el Collins adding depth to the offensive line, they'll be the best offensive line in the country if they can stay healthy.

Chase Clement Improves Catching Ability

With DeAngelo Peterson not on the roster anymore, Chase Clement will be the go-to-guy at tight end.

Though Clement posted seven catches for 96 yards and a touchdown this past season, he had some drops to go along with those catches.

The Tigers are expecting to open up the offense a little more with Mettenberger at quarterback, so Clement needs to work on ensuring those sure-handed grabs for the fall.

Ronnie Feist and Kwon Alexander Step Up

The Tigers need Ronnie Feist and Kwon Alexander to accept the challenge of filling Ryan Baker's shoes.

Both prospects are looking good at practice so far, and Les Miles thought so highly of Feist that he put him up against one of the baddest men on the team during the big cat drills: J.C. Copeland.

Feist didn't do so bad starting out, but Copeland eventually overpowered him, and you can check that out in the video posted on the slide.

Both linebackers have the raw abilities to be future greats, but they need to use this spring as a learning curve to get themselves some playing time in the fall.

Craig Loston Needs to Have Dominant Spring

Remember in 2010 when freshmen Tyrann Mathieu, Eric Reid, Spencer Ware, Sam Montgomery, Barkevious Mingo, Tharold Simon and Craig Loston made Tiger fans excited for the 2012 season?

Well, since then, every one of those names has lived up to his potential, aside from Loston. Loston dealt with a wrist injury his freshman season in 2009, which allowed him to receive a medical redshirt, and since then, he hasn't made a whole lot of noise.

Loston came into Baton Rouge as one of the best prospects in the nation, and with Brandon Taylor leaving as a senior, he'll get another chance to live up to the hype.

Loston needs a productive spring to lift his confidence and show that he's the same player he used to be.

Tharold Simon Lives Up to His Potential

Tharold Simon is the truth.

When I watched him in the spring game last year, I knew he was going to be something special. He closes on the ball with incredible speed, and he sticks to his man like glue. But can he replace an All-American like Mo Claiborne?

In the limited time that he played last season, Simon led the team with 10 pass breakups and had two interceptions.

This is an important spring for Simon to step up and become the man at corner.

Defensive Backfield Adds Depth

The Tigers' starting secondary will be rich of talent, but the group needs to add depth.

LSU is losing Mo Claiborne and Brandon Taylor, but they are replacing those players with Tharold Simon and Craig Loston. I don't expect the production to drop off that much, but what happens if one of these players gets injured?

There's no more Ron Brooks to place in the lineup without skipping a beat, so the Tigers need to develop solid backups for the secondary this spring.

Tyrann Mathieu Stays Humble and out of Trouble

Even though Robert Griffin III was outstanding last season, Tyrann Mathieu was the best player in college football in 2011.

His impact on the game was incredible, as he forced six fumbles, picked the ball off two times and scored four total touchdowns by punt returns and fumble returns.

The talent and the instincts are there, so all he has to do in the spring is stay humble and stay out of trouble.

That and working hard will insure that the Honey Badger has another amazing season as a Tiger, and that's something that every LSU fan is looking forward to in 2012.