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LSU Preview
08/13/08 - 04:55 PM
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BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - What a feeling it must be for a football
coach to stand triumphantly on a balcony like some charismatic head
of state, soaking in roars of approval from enthralled, admiring
masses below.
Les Miles enjoyed such a moment outside a Bourbon Street hotel
suite following LSU’s national championship win over Ohio State to
close out the 2007 season - a campaign that, for many reasons, will
be tough for Miles to top.
Having silenced the dwindling number of LSU fans still longing
for former coach Nick Saban - first by beating Saban’s Alabama,
then by resisting the temptation to defect to Michigan, then by
winning a consensus national title - Miles now looks to maintain
the extraordinary run he has enjoyed during his first three seasons
in Baton Rouge.
“I’ve watched lots of NFL teams and NBA teams, talked to some
coaches, and I’ve found a common thread there that will benefit
us,” Miles said. “It’s basically doing what you do, process who
we are, making sure that you don’t change the recipe on a team
that’s had success not only in one year, but in many years. That’s
where we’re at.”
Indeed, Miles is now 34-6 at LSU, including a perfect 3-0 in
bowls, and many of his own recruits have begun to emerge as stars
on a team that was already loaded with NFL talent when he took
over.
That trend must continue if LSU hopes to stay in contention for
another BCS title while playing an always difficult Southeastern
Conference schedule.
The most glaring hole is at quarterback following the graduation
of Matt Flynn and the dismissal of super-talented junior Ryan
Perrilloux.
The most likely candidate to take the first snap when the Tigers
open at home against Appalachian State on Aug. 30 is now sophomore
Andrew Hatch, known more at this point for transferring from
Harvard than anything he’s done on the gridiron. His only snaps for
LSU came in mop-up duty last season during a blowout of Middle
Tennessee. He’s thrown a grand total of two passes, completing one.
His only other competitors for playing time - redshirt freshman
Jarrett Lee and true freshman Jordan Jefferson - have yet to take a
college snap.
But the Tigers are deep at other positions, including the
offensive line, where four starters are returning, and they don’t
seem too concerned about a lack of experience behind center.
“I hear people talking about it, but I’m not worried,” left
guard Herman Johnson said. “I’ve seen what these guys can do. I
trust them.”
On defense, LSU has lost tackle Glenn Dorsey, one of the most
decorated players in school history. However, coaches are quick to
say the defensive line as a whole could be better this season.
One reason is the return of Charles Alexander, who was injured
most of last season, and Ricky Jean-Francois, who after being
academically ineligible for most of 2007, returned with dominant
performances in the SEC championship and BCS title games, winning
MVP of the latter.
Also returning are starting defensive ends Tyson Jackson and
Kirston Pittman. Pittman is in his sixth year at LSU because of a
pair of medical redshirts.
“You can’t downplay the loss of Charles Alexander. I think he
was playing extremely well at the beginning of the year and
unfortunately we didn’t have Ricky throughout the whole season,”
LSU co-defensive coordinator Doug Mallory said. “That hurt us, and
I don’t know if a lot of people understand the significance of
losing those two players up front.”
With Bo Pelini moving on to take the head coaching job at
Nebraska, Miles elevated two coaches from his own staff, Mallory
and Bradley Dale Peveto, to co-defensive coordinator. Mallory will
be in the booth calling the schemes, while Peveto will be on the
sideline monitoring personnel.
They have maintained essentially the same aggressive,
blitz-happy 4-3 scheme Pelini left behind, which they thought was
best because it’s what they and their players know.
Although there will be a pair of new starters at linebacker, two
at cornerback and one at safety, all of them have seen playing time
and were ready to compete for starting roles, coaches said.
Peveto called his current linebackers “as talented of a group
as we’ve had.”
Senior Darry Beckwith is the only returning starter. He’ll be
joined by sophomore Kelvin Sheppard and junior Perry Riley, while
junior Jacob Cutrera, who saw a lot of action last season, will
rotate in regularly.
At cornerback, junior Chris Hawkins and sophomore Jai Eugene are
expected to step in, with either Chad Jones, Danny McCray or Harry
Coleman joining returning starter Curtis Taylor.
On offense, whoever wins the quarterback job will have plenty of
help. A corps of big-play receivers return in Demetrius Byrd,
Brandon LaFell and Terrance Toliver. Richard Dickson may be the
best receiving tight end in the SEC.
In the running game, LSU has lost Jacob Hester to the NFL, but
still has four regulars in Richard Murphy, Charles Scott, Keiland
Williams and small but blazing fast Trindon Holliday, who also
returns kicks.
With so much talent returning, Miles expects his new quarterback
to do nothing more than master the fundamentals and limit mistakes.
No need for the quarterback to try to be a star here.
“Anytime you bring a new starter to the mix, it’s imperative
that the strength of the offense help that quarterback,” Miles
said. “One of the strengths certainly is the offensive line. I
like the idea that the running backs are veteran, the tight end is
veteran, the full back, and the receivers are veteran.
“If you want to look at it, I think it’s probably a great
position for a newcomer at quarterback to get comfortable and
understand that the guys that are around him are all capable.”
Capable enough, certainly, to have earned the national
championship rings they were given during the offseason.

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