LSU's Season Opener Leaves Much To Discuss, Part Two

(This is the second part of an article discussing LSU's season opener against Washington.)

Negatives

After hearing all summer about John Chavis’ commitment to aggressive defense, Tiger fans must be wondering if the same man was in charge of the defensive gameplan against Washington.

The defense was fairly aggressive in the first few plays of the game, and Harry Coleman almost sacked Jake Locker. However, once the Huskies got a major gain on third down against an all-out blitz, Chavis played conservatively for the rest of the second half.

This reactionary strategy allowed the Washington offense to dominate time of possession in the first half, as they converted their first six third downs and eight of their first nine.  

Chavis must be given some credit for his team’s improved play in the second half. The linebackers certainly looked sharper as Washington was unable to gain much yardage on the ground. Additionally, Washington finished the game converting only three of their final 10 third down opportunities.

Nevertheless, he still called for too much zone defense in the secondary, which greatly limited the playmaking options of a talented unit. The defense still allowed over 170 yards in the second half. While certainly an improvement over the first half, where the defense allowed a shocking 300 yards, it is still nowhere near being a lockdown defense. 

The last drive of the game, where Washington marched 81 yards in under two minutes, is also not a good sign for fans expecting an intense, swarming defense.

A similar letdown was felt on the offensive side of the ball, where Offensive Coordinator Gary Crowton and Les Miles relied on a straight ahead, North-South running game that rarely produced anything more than six feet and a cloud of dust.

Though both Jefferson and Williams routinely picked up big gains out of the option formation, it was used only intermittently until the team’s final drive, which was also its most impressive of the game.

Additionally, there was virtually no vertical passing game, as quarterback Jordan Jefferson was not given the opportunity to throw any passes beyond 15 yards (although as explained below, part of that blame lies with the offensive line).

LSU also did not take advantage of their depth in skill positions, rarely using their third or fourth receivers except in blocking, while Williams and Scott accounted for all but two carries out of the backfield.

Additionally, early enrollee Russell Shepard did not see a single snap in the game, either at his natural position of quarterback, or at wide receiver or running back, although Miles had previously stated that the highly regarded freshman would be involved in at least 10-15 plays per game. Rueben Randle, the top incoming freshman receiver in the country, received only spot duty.

The Offensive Line performed very poorly in this game. The sub-par run blocking can be partially blamed on the aforementioned predictable playcalling, which consisted of handing the ball off to Charles Scott for a two-yard run up the middle on countless first downs. However, the problems in pass blocking were far more concerning.

On the rare occasions when Jefferson dropped back to pass, he was forced to evade the Washington pass rush and either scramble to get back to the line of scrimmage or throw the ball away.

There were certainly high expectations for this group, with All-America candidate Ciron Black and two other starters returning, especially after Miles labeled this one of the strongest groups of linemen he had worked with at LSU.

Now, Offensive Line Coach Greg Studrawa must go back to the drawing board to lead a unit that can give the quarterbacks adequate time to throw the ball down the field.

Chris Hawkins was not able to provide adequate run support. He was repeatedly contained by the Washington receivers and was unable to break free and make tackles in the open field.

As a result, Washington was able to capitalize on several big plays, including a 51-yard pass from Locker to Johri Fogerson in the first quarter that was instrumental in the first Washington touchdown. In the past, Les Miles has been criticized for deferring to seniors, when more talented players were available on the bench.

While the veracity of these criticisms is certainly debatable (and many underclassmen have contributed to the LSU team over the past few years, including Peterson, Lafell, Jefferson, and Ciron Black), it was certainly puzzling to see Hawkins continue to struggle on the field, while talented youngsters like Morris Claiborne and Ron Brooks sat on the bench.

And finally, Derek Helton, the junior college transfer, started his tenure as the LSU punter on a very unimpressive note. On four attempts, he averaged only 32 yards, with a long of 38. Additionally, his punts did not have any of the impressive hang time that Coach Miles has repeatedly mentioned throughout the summer.

Brady Dalfrey also had an inauspicious start last year against Appalachian State and ultimately became a decent punter in the SEC, so there is certainly hope yet for Helton.

However, he certainly did not perform in a way that would justify the accolades he has garnered in kicking and punting camps over the past two years, and his 36 yard average in Junior College does not seem to be a fluke or statistical misprint.

After eight months of anticipation, this was certainly a disappointing performance for the LSU fanbase. The extremely positive comments from Les Miles and John Chavis during summer practices only added to the fans’ consistently high expectations, but much like last year, the offense lacked a vertical passing game, and the defense was unable to put together a dominating performance in any quarter.

In fact, there wasn’t even a single three and out for the Huskies' offense, while the highly regarded LSU unit had five.

Despite these notable problems, there were some positive signs as well. Three of the team’s most promising young players, Drake Nevis, Jordan Jefferson, and Patrick Peterson looked impressive throughout the game.

However, the questionable playcalling on offense and the over-reliance on conservative schemes on defense have certainly increased the number of nervous fans awaiting next week’s matchup against Vanderbilt.