LSU 41 - Appalachian State 13: Initial Thoughts

by Richard Pittman on Aug 30, 2008 1:50 PM CDT Comment 8 comments

After watching the game live on television, here are my thoughts:

1. The QB Situation Did Not Make Me Feel Good. After a nice start, Hatch slowed down and wasn't particularly effective for much of the game. Lee had some of the best throws and some of the worst throws of the night, including one bad interception and another pass that should have also been intercepted. Two TD passes to Brandon Lafell eased the pain.

2. The Punting Situation Must Improve. Dalfrey had one or two nice punts, but also a couple of terrible punts. Jasper punted once and did fine. If Dalfrey wants to keep the job, he has to show that it was just haven't-played-in-a-long-time jitters.

3. Jordan Jefferson Did Not Get In the Game. In a surprise, the coaches kept the true freshman on the bench. One wonders if all the Jefferson talk was a smokescreen and whether they're actually planning to redshirt him. Maybe they just wanted to keep their options open. Maybe it was because the other QBs, who they know will have to carry the load, looked so shaky and needed more time.

4. The Line Play Was Outstanding. We expected this to be the big strength of the team, and it was. Both lines greatly outplayed their counterparts on the other side of the ball. Even guys who don't normally play that much, like Tremaine Johnson, played very well.

5. Charles Scott Showed Why He Earned the Start. 16 carries for 160 yards and 2 touchdowns puts him on the short list for the And The Valley Shook Offensive Skill Position Player of the Week Award. No other running back was nearly as effective.

6. The Defense Played Very Well As a Whole. Except for one or two coverage breakdowns, which must be corrected, the defense was outstanding all day. The secondary played well despite its inexperience. Freshmen Phelon Jones, Patrick Peterson, and Ron Brooks came in and did well. The Mountaineers had no success when they tried to throw on Peterson.

0 recs | Comment 8 comments

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

QB's

I think Hatch did fairly well. His timing and touch was a little off, but that will come with time. It seemed like he was overly cautious in throwing downfield but I think as he gets more confidence that will come too. The main plus was that he played within himself and didnt try to get cute. He was a pretty good little scrambler. About like Flynn, maybe a little better.

Lee did not make a good case to be the starter. His interception throw was a poor display of judgement. He can make some great throws though.

Not once did armanti edwards look like he was going to rip a big one, but his receivers didnt help him much with all their drops.

Didnt see much of Terrance Tolliver at all. Dont know why that was.

by nepomo on Aug 30, 2008 3:55 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Toliver played a good bit

He just didn’t get the ball thrown his way. He made a nice block on a run that I saw. I think Toliver’s lack of numbers was more a reflection of the subpar QB play. We only completed 8 passes to wideouts, and only 3 wideouts made a catch. Toliver just wasn’t one of them.

As for the QBs, I actually think Lee showed more. Hatch looked OK, but it’s clear he’s going to have a problem getting the ball up the field. Lee made more mistakes, but he also had far better numbers.

Lee’s line was 6 for 10, 116 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1 interception
Hatch’s line was 7 for 14, 77 yards, 1 touchdown, 0 interceptions

Despite Lee’s bad interception, from a pure numbers perspective, Lee was a lot better in the passing game. Lee’s YPA was more than double Hatch’s. Hatch’s running added a nice dimension, though. Yeah, Lee made some mistakes and Hatch “managed the game” well, but Lee definitely looked like the guy who can actually move the ball. If he cuts down on the mistakes, he’ll be by far the better QB if today was any indication.

Richard Pittman

by Richard Pittman on Aug 30, 2008 4:35 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

QB's leave a lot to be desired.

I’m firmly in the Hatch camp. Lee’s first TD was on blown coverage by App St. Anyone could have thrown that ball. Lee’s second TD was all Lafell and blocking. Hatch was obviously more composed in the pocket and scrambled well. Lee should have had another pic on him as well.

For some reason I was never able to locate TT either. Saw J. Mitch in a lot, and Dixon.

Keiland played horrible. I wish we’d have seen more Murphy.

by LSU Jonno on Aug 30, 2008 10:22 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

To be fair, Hatch also had some catch-and-runs. In fact, his longest pass of the night was a catch-and-run to Jared Mitchell for 19 yards.

Richard Pittman

by Richard Pittman on Aug 30, 2008 10:54 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Lee's 1st TD

I wasn’t as thrilled with Lee as I could have been, but I was impressed with his first TD pass.

He came under pressure, used his mobility to buy himself time, kept his head up, spotted LaFell getting open and threw an accurate, catchable ball. Yes, there was confusion by ASU that led to LaFell being so open, but that TD was just as much about Lee making a good play as it was ASU making a bad one.

by dan iqua on Aug 31, 2008 8:58 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I will defer judgment on the QB's

Why do you guys think Lafell is returning kicks? I would like to see Murphy back there w/ holiday. Nothing against Lafell, but he just seems like a big guy to be returning kicks.

I also thought Chad Jones did a solid job fielding punts. Much improved in his decision making.

And finally, maybe we should look at adding Shephard to the punt return team.

by Zandor435 on Aug 31, 2008 8:10 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs