Welcome back, Tiger fans! I hope you all stay dry and safe throughout the weekend. In an effort to allow LSU and Missouri to play safely tomorrow, the game was moved from Baton Rouge to Columbia, MO at 11:00am Saturday. I’ll dig further into that matchup, but first I’ll do a quick recap of LSU’s 41-7 win over Vandy last week. I’ll start with the positives.

Good LSU

Myles Brennan was much more comfortable in his second start at quarterback, which is to be expected. Brennan consistently stepped up in the pocket and threw with confidence and conviction. Although I think the wide receiver rotation will shrink as the season goes on, I like that Brennan is spreading the ball out. 11 different players had catches for the Tigers, and that makes it harder for a defense to key in on an obvious threat like Terrace Marshall. 

I would say that John Emery had a breakout game had the game been against stronger competition. Emery ran for over 100 yards with an 8.6 ypc average. I’m still not sure if he’s LSU’s best back, but he’s definitely the most dynamic. A big play threat in the running game will make life easier for Myles Brennan, and Emery is a threat every time he touches the ball. 

The defense would’ve looked better than last week by simply showing up to the game, but they actually showed up AND made plays. Ali Gaye had help in the pass rush from Andre Anthony and Travez Moore. Eli Ricks got his second interception in his second career game. Derek Stingley showed no lingering effects from his illness, and looked like himself, the best corner in the country. He toyed with defenders on his punt returns, and you feel like “maybe this is the one” every time he goes back to make a return. 

Bad LSU

The drops have to stop. It happens with all inexperienced receivers, from Dwayne Bowe to Brandon LaFell to Odell Beckham, but the margin for error will get much smaller as the competition gets stiffer. Drops kill drives and momentum, but they will slow down as the receivers get more comfortable. They just have to get comfortable fast.

While the defense played better, they still gave Vandy opportunities that would be costly against better teams. There were still plays where the running back was somehow uncovered in the flat on pass plays. This LSU team is not good enough at this point to blow coverages, especially with Florida looming in the near future. The linebackers have to make more of an impact, especially in the running game. From hesitation to over pursuit, they have not been what they will need to be to make this a dominant defense. The good thing is the talent is there. Players can get experience, but their talent is what it is.

LSU vs Missouri

I can’t judge Mizzou too harshly for getting blown out by Alabama; Bama would blow out most teams right now. However, I can judge them for getting routed by Tennessee. Tennessee is improving, but it doesn’t bode well for your team to lose by 3 touchdowns to them. To make things worse, they’ll be missing 7 players due to Covid and contact tracing. I won’t make the mistake of assuming a win (like I did against Mississippi St.), but there are some things I’d like to see from LSU in addition to eating W’s. 

LSU needs to be more efficient on third downs. They converted 33% of their 3rd downs against Vandy. Yes, VANDERBILT. The offense has to manage to stay on the field and give their defense rest when needed. Part of this problem goes back to the drops, but offensive line play is key. 

The defense has to be prepared and disciplined. Read keys, Identify responsibilities. I mentioned the linebackers needing to step up, but the safeties do, too. Credit is due to Todd Harris, who had an interception in the end zone last week, but the Tiger safeties need to be more active in the run game and consistent in pass defense. Jacoby Stevens is an athletic linebacker listed as a safety, so I’m talking more about Harris and Maurice Hampton.

LSU should win by 3 TD’s, but I don’t know what LSU I’m getting at 11:00am. Kudos to LSU and Mizzou officials for making a decision early and moving the game to Columbia. Nobody wants to move a game to a different date with the uncertainty that 2020 brings. It’d be just my luck that the game get moved to a bye date just to get washed out by another hurricane. It’s important not only to play this game, but to play it before LSU plays Florida. The Tigers will get better with every game. This team has a lot of growing to do, but there was a lot of growth shown from the first game to the second one. Hopefully we’ll see that trend continue tomorrow. Until then, be safe, stock up on food (and beverages), and GEAUX TIGERS!!