LSU Football: Final 2014 Positional Grades for the Tigers
LSU went through a major transition phase in 2014.
The Tigers declined offensively in large part to the departure of Odell Beckham Jr., Jarvis Landry, Zach Mettenberger and Jeremy Hill. Their fast start in the NFL this season shows how much talent LSU actually lost.
Head coach Les Miles saw his team average less than 20 points per game against conference opposition. Only Vanderbilt's putrid 12.1 points per game in SEC play was worse.
But on defense, the Tigers saw improvement. LSU only allowed 20 points per game in conference play, which is over four points better than the year before. Defensive coordinator John Chavis notes his unit finished first in total yards:
"Proud of our guys for fighting back this year! #1 defense in the #SEC . #GeauxTigers #LSU pic.twitter.com/lhO8rL2Oeo
— John Chavis (@LSUCoachChavis) December 5, 2014"
Some position groups on both sides of the ball were stronger than others. Here is how each graded out.
Quarterback
1 of 8
LSU's quarterback play was mediocre.
Sophomore Anthony Jennings' limited skill set reared its ugly head multiple times this season. Jennings completed less than 50 percent of his passes and often locked on to his receiver. He threw for over 200 yards only once.
Credit must be given for Jennings keeping his cool through the criticism. His clutch arm led the Tigers to victories over Wisconsin and Florida. He rushed for a career-high 119 yards in the season finale against Texas A&M.
True freshman Brandon Harris showed flashes of excellence but was miserable in his only start against Auburn. Harris has played rarely since then, though fans have consistently clamored for him to replace Jennings.
It was clear LSU was going to see a drop-off after Mettenberger's departure. But the play of LSU's signal-callers in 2014 was less than encouraging.
Grade: D
Running Back
2 of 8
Leonard Fournette's heavily anticipated debut season was a success.
Fournette did not live up to the lofty expectations he set for himself, though he did finish the regular season with 891 yards and eight touchdowns.
Fournette helped propel the Tigers to road victories against Florida and Texas A&M with dominating performances. He only needs 111 yards against Notre Dame in the Music City Bowl to set the freshman rushing record at LSU.
Seniors Terrence Magee and Kenny Hilliard were solid performers. True freshman Darrel Williams also provided depth to the backfield.
LSU's fullbacks had another strong season. Senior Connor Neighbors shared the Percy E. Roberts Outstanding Offensive Award with left La'el Collins, per LSU Sports Information. Neighbors and backup Melvin Jones helped paved the way for the Tigers' stable of running backs.
Overall, the unit was good but not great. Hill was missed more than most expected. The running backs struggled to make tacklers miss and break long runs, which put a big dent in LSU's final rushing statistics.
Grade: B-
Wide Receivers
3 of 8
No positional unit on LSU's roster lost more talent than the wide receivers. Beckham Jr. and Landry's immediate success in the NFL is a perfect indicator.
Still, sophomore Travin Dural stepped up in their absence. Dural started off among the conference leaders in nearly every receiving category but eventually cooled off after Jennings began to decline. He finished with 37 catches for 758 yards and seven touchdowns.
True freshman Malachi Dupre showed why he was a 5-star recruit in the 2014 class. Dupre's speed and ball skills were evident, which left fans wanting more. His 318 yards and five touchdowns ranked second on the team.
Fellow freshmen Trey Quinn and John Diarse split time throughout the season in the slot, with Diarse finishing the season as the No. 3 receiver. They combined for 30 catches for just under 400 yards and two touchdowns.
It is hard to evaluate the overall performance of the Tiger receivers due to the poor quarterback play. Nevertheless, the group was an overall success.
Grade: B
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Tight Ends
4 of 8
LSU's tight ends underperformed in 2014.
The group entered the season with 28 catches and no touchdowns in the past two seasons combined. The mediocre receiving trend continued with eight catches for 63 yards and a touchdown this year.
The most shocking development of the group, though, was its inconsistent blocking. Tight ends coach Steve Ensminger earned a reputation of having maulers on the edge. Instead, reliable blockers, such as Dillon Gordon, had some rough spots during the season.
No real star emerged from Gordon, Logan Stokes, Travis Dickson, DeSean Smith and Colin Jeter this year. They were all good but not great players.
Grade: C
Offensive Line
5 of 8
The LSU offensive line was Miles' best positional unit. The group had rough spots, and at times it had difficulty dominating games in the trenches when defenses could key in on the run.
But first-year offensive line coach Jeff Grimes did a fantastic job finding the right mixture of players up front. Grimes eventually decided to move Ethan Pocic to right guard as the replacement to the departed Trai Turner. Left tackle La'el Collins, left guard Vadal Alexander, center Elliott Porter and right tackle Jerald Hawkins returned as starters.
Porter's suspension and late-season injury forced Pocic to play center. Hoko Fanaika and Evan Washington proved to be capable backups.
Collins was the star of the group. He was awarded first-team All-SEC and the Charles McClendon Award as LSU's MVP, per LSU Sports Information. Most of Fournette's best runs came on the left side of the line because of the senior left tackle.
"That is an NFL block right there RT @Goldkamp247 LSU's La'el Collins blows Jon Bullard 5 yards off LOS https://t.co/DLlDuSo0S2
— Derek Tyson (@DerekTysonESPN) October 13, 2014"
The group as a whole had miserable performances against Mississippi State and Arkansas. But it was spectacular against Florida, Kentucky, Ole Miss and Texas A&M despite limited contributions at quarterback.
Grade: B+
Defensive Line
6 of 8
The hardest LSU position group to grade is the defensive line.
Defensive ends Danielle Hunter and Jermauria Rasco combined for 127 tackles, 18.5 tackles for loss, 10 quarterback hurries, 30 passes disrupted, two fumbles recoveries and two forced fumbles.
Impressive.
But the biggest hole in their 2014 resume was their poor combined sack total of 5.5. There were 11 players in the SEC who surpassed 5.5 sacks on their own. Sacks can sometimes be a deceiving indicator of pass-rushing effectiveness, but the tape shows they were not effective traditional pass-rushers.
With that said, Rasco and Hunter used their athleticism to chase down runners and wreak havoc. They were overall effective players LSU could not do without. Young backups Tashawn Bower and Deondre Clark were average.
LSU's defensive tackles started the season miserably. An early injury to Quentin Thomas forced true freshman Davon Godchaux to play a high volume of snaps alongside Christian LaCouture.
The defensive tackles were eviscerated by Mississippi State and Auburn. But as the season went along, they became stalwarts at the line of scrimmage.
Godchaux and LaCouture showed why the future is bright at the position. Yet the shocking lack of production and playing time from Greg Gilmore and Maquedius Bain hurt the depth of the unit.
Overall, the LSU defensive line was an active group that held its own in the running game. But a combined 11 sacks on the season is a low number for the amount of talent the group possesses.
Grade: C+
Linebackers
7 of 8
LSU linebacker Kwon Alexander was the Tigers' best all-around player in 2014. Alexander's efforts were rewarded with the with the Percy E. Roberts Outstanding Defensive Player Award, per LSU Sports Information.
Alexander's outfit for LSU's football banquet stood out more than his play on the season:
"Lil sauce from the night !! pic.twitter.com/rtxXysZGlT
— Alexander the Great (@Showtime17Kwon) December 15, 2014"
Alexander's value cannot be quantified by his statistics alone, as he was more than the defense's leading tackler. He carried a unit that had a slow start to the season in run and pass defense.
But the junior eventually got the help he deserved.
Chavis' defensive coordinator duties can be a handful, especially considering he also serves as linebacker coach. His decision to replace D.J. Welter with sophomore Kendell Beckwith at middle linebacker changed the complexion of the defense.
Beckwith was an effective hitter in run defense and a disruptive blitzer. His 68 tackles on limited snaps was impressive.
Lamar Louis, Deion Jones and Duke Riley were serviceable backups and fantastic special teams performers. The trio provided much-needed depth to the group.
Grade: B
Defensive Backs
8 of 8
LSU's defensive backs lived up to their lofty expectations.
Sure, there were some rough patches to start the season against Mississippi State and Auburn. But that was the case for the entire defense.
LSU's defensive backs were fantastic in nearly every other game. They finished second in the SEC in pass defense, only allowing 162.3 yards per game through the air.
Cornerback Tre'Davious White was the group's most consistent performer. Jalen Collins deserves praise as well, as talented starter Rashard Robinson was in and out of the lineup due to off-the-field issues.
Jalen Mills, Ronald Martin and Rickey Jefferson provided spectacular safety play. All three had clutch second-half interceptions against Wisconsin, Ole Miss and Florida respectively.
Chavis also saw contributor Dwayne Thomas sidelined for the season with an ACL injury against New Mexico State. This forced a changeup in his "Mustang" package.
Luckily enough for LSU, 5-star recruit Jamal Adams was waiting in the wings. Adams was a dynamo who made explosive, game-changing plays. He was LSU's lone true freshman to be named on ESPN's True Freshman All-America Team.
It's amazing to think LSU lost two major contributors during the season yet did not miss a beat. Defensive backs coach Corey Thompson's embarrassment of riches will only grow when commits Kevin Toliver II and Xavier Lewis of the 2015 class join the group.
It is hard to argue against LSU's secondary as Miles' best position unit. White and his teammates deserve all the accolades they receive.
Grade: A-
Stats, rankings and additional information provided by cfbstats.com, ESPN.com and LSU Sports Information. Recruiting information provided by 247Sports.
Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow me on Twitter @CarterthePower.
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