Florida 13 - LSU 3: Snap Judgments - And The Valley Shook

Florida 13 - LSU 3: Snap Judgments

by Richard Pittman on Oct 10, 2009 10:22 PM CDT in Football Comment 42 comments

Well, with Tim Tebow playing, a loss was, while not exactly predictable, not really a big surprise either. Exactly how it happened is open to much discussion. Here are my Snap Judgments.

Jordan Jefferson played a poor game, and once again went into the tank in the 3rd quarter. He started holding the ball forever and inviting sacks, getting 3 of them in the 3rd quarter alone, a quarter in which we ran 8 plays. He'll finish 11 for 17 on the night, but very few of his passes went down the field, and he took sacks.
Never has LSU gotten more infuriating penalties. We were called for a neutral zone infraction 5 times. We had, I think, 3 false starts, including two on consecutive play attempts. We had a personal foul facemask call on a play where we would have gotten off the field if not for the call (and the call was somewhat questionable as to whether it should have been a personal foul or one of the old-fashioned incidental facemasks that are now supposed to be waived off).
The defense is going to get a lot of credit for holding Florida to a small number of points, but they also gave up yardage every time Florida touched the ball. We relied on a missed field goal and a failed 4th down try to keep the score as low as it was.
I do not understand why Russell Shepard got not playing time in this game. I know they'll say, "We were having a hard time getting into a rhythm and we didn't want to bring in a new guy," but the fact is that the offense was stagnating, and we needed to do something to shake things up.
On our 2nd to last possession, which we all thought was likely our last gasp, we saw another example of poor game management by our coaching staff, which was also on display at the end of the 1st half last week. This time, facing 3rd and 2, we went to Charles Scott who came up short. The ensuing events made it clear that our coaches had NO PLAN for what to do if we were faced with a 4th down. It took forever to get a play into the game and when Jefferson dropped back to pass, it appeared the receivers were run-blocking. The critical 4th down play was dead virtually before the snap.
I still think that the game was not of any special importance, as our goals are still in reach, and we needed to win out from here even if we had won.
Florida's defense is really good, but our offense lacked all dynamism tonight. How many times did we even attempt to throw the ball more than 10 yards down the field?
Special teams had a quiet game. Except for one poor punt, Derek Helton had a good night. I don't think we had any opportunity to return a punt, and our kickoff returns were nothing special but also not awful.
I thought the offensive line didn't do a bad job tonight. We had a little running room and Jefferson usually had time to do something with the ball. He just did not often use that time wisely.
That's all for now. Due to work obligations, i doubt I will get to do a second viewing of the game, and frankly it was boring anyway.

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Fully agree sir..

Our play calling was absolutely ridiculous the entire game…O-line had good protection, but even good protection only lasts so long. Jefferson looked like a lost puppy on multiple occasions. On the final 4th down, as you noted, our receivers were blocking, on a 4th and 14…one word, wow.

by Rogerssp05 on Oct 10, 2009 10:31 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

I don't recall a single downfield pass

to stretch the field…and why, with Jefferson struggling, the running game wasn’t more of a factor was beyond me…Florida can be ran on downhill.

"Hollywood made a movie of my life. The film had me proposing to my wife on the football field. I would never misuse a football field that way." -Crazy Legs Hirsch

by Stuck in the Plains on Oct 11, 2009 6:43 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

not in the waning seconds

when everyone and their mother knows whose getting the ball, obviously.

"Hollywood made a movie of my life. The film had me proposing to my wife on the football field. I would never misuse a football field that way." -Crazy Legs Hirsch

by Stuck in the Plains on Oct 11, 2009 6:45 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

We survived this one, whew!

Tough win for us this evening. Ya’ll didn’t let up and we squeeked this one out. Hopefully, we are not too beat up for our game with AR next Saturday. Noise got to us early but we found a way to play fairly error free football and I think that paid off in the end. Your D coordinator probably didn’t game plan for as much running as we did.
Do us a favor, beat Bama they look like beasts again this year.
If you don’t make the SECC we look forward to hosting you guys in the Swamp next season.

by 1974gator on Oct 10, 2009 10:46 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Too many sacks

I don’t remember who it was but someone recently pointed out that Jefferson often drops back well beyond the typical pocket. The outside linemen are left with a more difficult job in their blocking assignments because they can’t force overpursuits. It really seems like that should be an easy fix so a lot of the blame has to be on the coaching staff for not driving home the point that a “pocket” is a contained space that only goes back about 10 yards behind the line of scrimmage. It seems he often further back than that.

As far as the general offensive ineptitude, I think a lot of it remains the play calling. Is Jefferson reluctant to throw it downfield or is he being shackled? Why aren’t we seeing more of those over the top 5-10 yard passes to Dickson? No Shepard or Randle? The coaching staff is afraid of opening it up so we get 3 points in 4 quarters. That philosophy might need to be reevaluated.

by no brainer on Oct 10, 2009 10:49 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Not to defend Jefferson

But chances are that your receivers may not have been open with Haden and Jenkins covering. The surprise is that we were able to create pressure on Jefferson, something we had been lacking on in previous games. I think Jefferson could have helped the cause by tucking and running more.

I am glad we were able to hold yall off, especially when Meyer turned into Ron Zook and elected to try to sit on a 7 point lead instead of try to throw downfield.

I am also surprised that the refs missed the obvious PI call on Cooper’s TD, especially when they appeared to want to be the “stars of the show” up to that point calling everything in sight! I supposed they just weren’t looking downfield, expecting our 72nd dive play of the game!

At least there were no celebration penalties tonight…..maybe since there was so little to celebrate?

by skigator93 on Oct 10, 2009 10:58 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Coverage may have been good

but the biggest problem with sacks is definitely our O line and (I believe) Jefferson’s positioning within the pocket and his tendency to hold onto the ball. I don’t think you would have been as surprised if you had been aware of our weakness in this area. Unfortunately it was all too predictable.

by no brainer on Oct 10, 2009 11:06 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I agree..

but it’s not that Jefferson drops back too far, I believe some of the pressure could be alleviated if he were to step up in the pocket, but he is still young and he might not be able to step up and read the field at the same time yet.

by Mikeno on Oct 11, 2009 12:54 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I respectfully disagree...

he is taking 10-12 yard drops at times. Thre is no way an O-tackle can block a guy that simply has to run straight up field.

The worst part is that he fails to look down field when he completes his drop…he looks at the oncoming defenders instead.

I am not sure that JL will be a better option, but he did move the offense last year. He was forced to try to make too many plays because we were always behind (terrible defense).

Some changes have to be made before the AU game in my opinion.

by Houseplants on Oct 11, 2009 1:17 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Frustrating Loss and Very Boring Game

Lack of offensive identity finally caught up with LSU. Florida’s defense was excellent, but LSU’s offense seemed tentative and afraid of making mistakes. Reminded of 2004 or 2006 Auburn game. Can’t really tell if the receivers had trouble getting open or if Jefferson was too unsettled in the pocket. I suspect its a little of both. Need to regroup and rest up. Auburn will be hungry in a couple weeks. Team needs to turn the page quickly and focus on that game.

by NOPE on Oct 10, 2009 11:32 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

our offensive gameplan was the most frustrating part of this game....

Mistakes hurt us, but we played like a team trying not to lose rather than attacking this team. Even if RS has ball security issues, he should have been in the game late b/c of his explosiveness.

If you had told me before the game that we were going to hold UF to 13 points, then i would feel pretty good about our chances. The D played well enough to win. Offensively, we never put any pressure on UF at all.

Our lack of a solid gameplan killed us. There was no urgency.

by Zandor435 on Oct 11, 2009 10:17 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Second bullet point, the personal foul face mask

Seemed like grounding could have been called, which was probably caused by the face mask. Not that it really mattered.

I disagree that this game was of no special importance, I think it’s a major boost of confidence if we would have won it. Conversely, I suppose it’s a game a lot of people thought we would lose, so it’s not a season-breaker, but it still sucks, and I think it hurts the teams psyche overall.

by artiger on Oct 10, 2009 11:36 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Again, the O-line will get the credit, but Jefferson is...

hanging them out to dry.

If tonight is any indication, Jefferson is not a big game player. He took poor sacks on two 4th down plays tonight…he did this once last week. He looks totally uncomfortable out there except when he tucks and runs. He can’t throw a short pass with any accuracy, he is scared to throw it over the middle, and he locks in on one receiver…if is isn’t open immediately, he starts looking at the pass rushers…I cannot remember the last time he went through a progression.

The big question is…why has our staff refused to make a change. Lee had a tough season last year, but he wasn’t afraid to try to make a play. If we had played any defense he would not have looked too bad.

Obviously, Shepard should also be getting snaps. If not at QB, put him out there as a receiver. I would prefer him to Trindon as a receiver.

by Houseplants on Oct 10, 2009 11:47 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

It may be too early..

to be talking about a QB change. IMO that might put us into salvage mode and send us into a spiral instead of preventing one. It could also be the fix we need, that’s why the coaches get paid the big bucks to make the hard choices.

by Mikeno on Oct 11, 2009 12:56 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

JJ isn't the problem

JJ has done thing well this year and has by and large improved throughout the season. He definitely had a bad game, but he didn’t lose the game for us. What is he supposed to do on a 4th down play where all of his receivers are blocking downfield for a run play?

And JL may have improved, or he may still not be able to handle the pressure.

by Zandor435 on Oct 11, 2009 10:21 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Six weeks into the season..

.. and our offense is STILL not improving. I like Miles. That is, I want to like Miles, but the fact is, he is WAY too conservative in play-calling, even in a game like this. I saw Bama execute a perfect fake punt in the FIRST HALF against Ole Miss. It made me miss Nick terribly. I knew right then and there that his replacement simply does not have those kind of cojones or smarts or slyness or whatever you want to call it. Saban doesn’t wait until his back is against the wall to take shots. EVERYBODY knows you will pull out the trick play when you’re down, so why wait for them to be ready? First half scores also make the scoreboard at the end of the game and when you do it with bold play calling, it even has the added advantage of demoralizing the other team.

Our recievers were covered. OK, you could see that. What do you do? Call more pass plays and leave your QB with no option? Penalties, penalties, and more stupid penalties. There is just no excuse for them this far into the season. We penalized the Gators down the field. The LSU D is the only thing that kept this from being an embarrassing loss.

But, I still feel embarrassed. There is no moral victory here. We are not Tennessee. We have the tools for a great offense. The blame for their lack of production and lack of focus and lack of preparation fall squarely on Miles and his staff.

If we could just sythesize life in a laboratory, we could prove that the creation of life requires no intelligence.

by Tigernut on Oct 11, 2009 5:45 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

That was the worst offensive gameplan I've ever witnessed.

We talked all week about what this game meant. It was a pride game. Putting this game in perspective relative to the goals of the season, it was meaningless because we still control our own destiny if we lose. So given that fact, why did we come out with such a patheticly conservative game plan?

Our gameplan was such that we were going to have to execute better than we had all season to have success. Given the defense that we were playing, that was a flawed strategy. We played like the higher ranked team that was expected to win playing everything close to the vest to test out our opponent. Not the underdog playing with nothing to lose, openning up the offense and playing loose.

This is particularly disturbing when we KNEW, no matter the QB that started for Florida, that he was going to try to be hidden. Tebow would obviously be playing like Superman with some kyrptonite strapped to his neck rather than his usual self, and if Brantley were to play, they likely would have dumbed it down for him as well in a hostile environment in his first SEC start. So at no time did we try to exploit the fact that Florida was going to try to hide their QB’s in this game. We let them play ball control, and slowly run it down our throats. We did a decent job of defending, but our gameplan was strategically, flawed.

Game mismanagement was again on full display. The 4th down play at the end of the game (both of them) was to this point some of the most important plays of the year. Why didn’t we call a time out to talk about it to make sure we were running the best play possible?

This game really wasn’t as close as the score would indicate. Florida came in with a vanilla gameplan, and had their way the entire game. We were apparently trying our hardest, and couldn’t make them flinch. Really, really disappointing.

I’m also glad we got Shep in the game. I bet all those recruits who attended the game who aren’t the most dynamic player in the country are looking at our team thinking, “well shit, if Shep can’t get into the game, what chance do I have?”

by LSU Jonno on Oct 11, 2009 8:58 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Agreed

1) It was apparent from the very beginning of the game that JJ wasn’t going to have time to throw anything but short passes. So what? We were moving down the field, spreading out the defense and softening up the middle. What I can’t understand is the abandonment of things that work in favor of a scheme that, due to some pathological need on somebody’s part to prove that we can run the ball between the tackles, doesn’t work (even though we have more than ample proof it won’t work) What I’d like to know is who’s calling the shots on this? Crowton on his own (doesn’t sound like him) or Miles. Somebody (and I think it’s the head coach’s job) needs to step up, admit that our O-Line just isn’t good enough, is not going to be good enough and gameplan around it. When we do, we move the ball. When we don’t, we get what we saw last night.

2) I disagree with the criticisms of JJ and the takes on his deep drop. I THINK if you look at the sacks last night, they all came on plays when he had a “normal” drop. With an offensive line this bad (not to mention the poor blocking our backs give in pass protection), the only way the kid has enough time to look downfield, read the coverage and throw the ball is by dropping deeper. Luckily he’s got a strong enough arm to do it. With this o-line, you have to throw short, quick passes if you’re going to take a shallow (or even normal) drop. Again, so what? It seems to work. Otherwise, take the extra 3-4+ yard drop and use the arm to get the ball downfield. The alleged increased blocking difficulty this creates for the o-line is more than offset by the extra time it buys.

3) On a positive note, I was impressed by:

(a) the D’s discipline in not letting Tebow draw them offside despite repeated attempts during that one aborted attempt.

(b) whoever was responsible (Chavis or Miles) for instructing the D line to smack the Florida center the next time he bobbed his head. Once they did it, the snap-count head bobbing stopped

I am often amused by the comments of all of the Monday morning QBs, including me, simply because none of us are being offered big dough to coach this team, because none of us are qualified for the job. What’s particularly frustrating to me, though, and what I’d really like to know, is what we armchair critics are missing? When we watch a game and see a team abandon things that work in favor of things that don’t work, what are we missing. What are these professional coaches seeing that we don’t see which cause them to follow this path? I assume that they must see something we don’t see or understand something we don’t understand that causes them to do what they do, but I can’t, for the life of me, figure out what it is. The only thing I can come up with is that SOMEBODY (and I assume it’s Miles) is hell bent of proving that we can do something that we simply can’t – by all objective evidence – do, rather than accepting the fact and playing to our strengths and around our weaknesses.

by Deluded on Oct 11, 2009 9:36 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

i agree

What are these professional coaches seeing that we don’t see which cause them to follow this path?

I have to assume that the coaches know things we don’t. Why do we hear RS will get 8-10 touches a game when he has 11 all year. His high for the year was 4-5 in UGA game i think. Why do we keep hearing that if they clearly don’t want to give him but a few touches a game?

by Zandor435 on Oct 11, 2009 10:39 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I slightly disagree on one thing

You said:

I disagree with the criticisms of JJ and the takes on his deep drop.

JJ does take really deep drops which make it hard for the O-line to protect him (which is the play call not JJ’s own tendancy), but he’s now a sophomore and he doesn’t seem to have learned the concept of stepping up in the pocket. Why not? That’s a coaching problem, and it isn’t Miles. Crowton is the QB coach. That is basic position knowledge that JJ doesn’t know. That is Crowton’s fault.

by LSU Jonno on Oct 11, 2009 10:52 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I really think it's time for Les to go....

It’s obvious that Les has no idea what he’s doing and the coaches he is hiring have no idea what they are doing. We have a very talented lineup of people and we cannot do anything with them. The offense is last in the SEC, the defense cannot stop the run. Take for granted folks, unless some major changes during their bye week, LSU will lose 4 out of 6 of their last games. Auburn will kill them with their offense as they have one of the top offenses in the country right now, Alabama will crush us as they are probably the best team overall in the nation right now behind Florida and may be even better than Florida, Ole Miss is a much better team than us, and for some bazaar reason, we cannot beat Arkansas as of late, so honestly, what’s up with this? Well, fact remains, hate to say it, but it’s the truth and is more obvious all of the time, Nick Saban and his recruits are no longer at LSU and Les Miles can no longer win off of Saban’s work. We are seeing all Les now and we are also seeing Nick Saban. LSU is falling to pieces and Alabama is getting stronger, so there you go. Les has good qualities, but he lacks what it takes to bring it together and obviously his coaches do too. I think it’s time for us to start looking elsewhere for a good solid coach. Many coaches would love to coach at LSU and would be supurb as we are still one of the best football programs around, but honestly, LSU is on their way down and not because of the players because we have a very talented lineup of players, but the coaching staff are not bringing them together and poor coaching is killing the team. I love LSU as much as any fan, but I’m not going to be in denial when I see a very big problem, I have nothing against Les, but honestly , a person is hired to do a job and if they cannot perform to the level that they are expected, then they have to be replaced, just the way it is. If Les stops digging for magic and starts improving his coaching, I will be a 100% behind him, but he’s got to get over this luck junk and start doing a much better job at coaching our football team. Tiger fans are passionate fans and we love our team and we love to win. We should win. We have a very talented football program, but we are lacking in the coaching department. Jefferson should not be forced to play first string quarterback this early on. Next year perhaps, but right now, no. He’ll be a good quarterback if he is coached properly, but it was obvious to me last night, he’s in way over his head right now. Big difference going from high school to top level of performance in college ball. So much I could say with what went wrong, but I am grateful we only lost by ten, could have been a whole lot more. Just be real folks and don’t lie to yourself, The proof has been there all year and all last year….time for some change….

by dsrimages on Oct 11, 2009 9:01 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

I couldn't disagree more w/ many of your points.

I don’t think you give Miles enough credit in many areas, but to be honest, your points are so broad, I don’t feel like trying to construct such a large response to your general frustrations.

by Zandor435 on Oct 11, 2009 10:43 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

A lot of sky is falling sentiment there

I hope the venting helped you let out some steam. So, in summary, all our remaining SEC opponents are going to kill us because we’ve got Miles and he’s playing with his recruits now, not Saban’s, right? And as for the “Jefferson should not be forced to play first string quarterback this early on” assertion, who do you propose Miles’ play back there?

If LSU goes on to lose all of the games you mention, then I’m willing to discuss Miles’ future but I think it’s entirely premature to bring it up after LSU lost by 10 points to the number 1 team in the country. Nobody should be satisfied with this performance and the coaching staff’s game plan should be questioned but I think you’re taking it a bit far.

by no brainer on Oct 11, 2009 11:06 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Its not time

If you guys followed Miles at all in the Big 12 you know what he is. He is a good solid coach, but he is not in the class as Saban, Stoops, Meyer, Carroll or Mack Brown. He is going to win a lot of games for you, but he won’t get you at the level that coaches above have their programs every year where 10 to 11 wins is guaranteed.

He recruits as well and maybe better than Saban but he does not develop his players as well as Saban and that is really apparent. You can just see it in the defense. There are alot of talented players there but they are not as well developed.

I think it is laughable to criticize the offensive coordinator when it is essentially the same offense being run from the 2007 team albeit a little more conservative. Its just that the players are not as good.

There was a firefight!!!!

by ThePhenomenon on Oct 11, 2009 4:07 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

That's stupid

He’s won 11 games every year at LSU except for last year. It is one loss, ONE, against the #1 team in the country. I do not mind this loss that much, because it doesn’t matter in the long run, we did have a terrible gameplan and now have a bye week at the perfect time to help us solve the problems, and we lost in a way that highlighted those problems.

Developing players is not Miles’ responsibility. He is the head coach, and it is up to position coaches to develop players. I don’t think the previous defensive staff did a good job of this, as evidenced by the huge improvement of the linebackers since last year, but the new staff has gotten more out of some seniors who haven’t done anything before.

Are you serious? The players on this offense aren’t as good as the 07 offense? Well let’s see, we have Scott, an All-SEC tailback, instead of Jacob Hester. We have Jordan Jefferson, who is much more talented than Matt Flynn is. We have Lafell as a senior, projected as the best senior receiver this draft. We have Toliver hitting his stride. Those two are much better than the combination of a crippled Doucet, Byrd, and Lafell when he couldn’t catch. We have Black as a senior instead of Black as a sophomore, we have Barksdale instead of Stewart, both big upgrades. We may be a little weaker at guard/center, but those are the only positions on offense. Oh yeah, we have a senior Dickson instead of a sophomore Dickson. Then, to top it off, we have the fastest player in college football history, the #1 recruit last year that can play any offensive position, the #1 receiver recruit, and Keiland Williams as the backup tailback. I think it’s safe to say that the players are much better than 07, but we are handcuffing the offense.

by Ianoka on Oct 11, 2009 4:52 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Agree with most of that

but I would say comparing this team to 07 is apples and oranges. It’s hard to say that this one is better or worse, e.g., Flynn had the benefit of being a backup for a LONG time (with a bit of game experience), compared to JJ who got thrown into the fire way too early, albeit out of necessity.

by artiger on Oct 11, 2009 9:41 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I agree

I was just comparing it from a talent standpoint. The experience, intangibles, etc. were much better (at this point) in 07 than this year’s team.

by Ianoka on Oct 11, 2009 9:48 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

My Two Cents...

First, I love LSU and have every since I flunked Chemistry 101 in 1964. I post here not having read the previous so if I’m repeating what has gone before, my apologies. I’m sore this morning from clenching my fists and bracing myself from the imaginary hit I was about to dish out or absorb. My one concern is I just don’t understand the play calling, Jefferson’s ability to carry out the play aside. I just don’t think he (Jefferson) is a pocket passer, drop back or shotgun. Neither was Jon Crompton, until yesterday when he became Peyton Manning when they finally figured out he threw better on the run, and I don’t mean for his life. Of course, the Georgia defense helped out a little. The LSU game was painful to watch but I didn’t come away from the game thinking all is lost. I love our defensive secondary (Chad Jones Whooo) and Patrick Peterson and linebackers. Unfortunately we don’t have a Glen Dorsey to anchor the D Line. On the bright side we control our own destiny. All we have to do is win out and we’re in the conference championship. Hot Boudin!!!

by Tiger6367 on Oct 11, 2009 11:51 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

It is simple.

Gary Crowton sucks.

1. NO FUCKING OPTION IN THE SEC!

2. Last time I checked timing routes such as quick slants on 4th and 3 were legal in college ball!

3. Don’t blame the QB (who is mobile) for pulling the ball down if you are too stupid to draw up plays that get your senior receiver open!!!

Jefferson to #1 and Tolliver should be like Manning to Harrison and Wayne! Throw in Dixon and you’ve got Dallas Clark there too. It’s Crowton.

by Dan Kern on Oct 11, 2009 12:05 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

CAVEAT

2 years ago, Crowton was a “genius.” What’s changed? Your post assumes that Crowton is responsible for what’s happening. I don’t think so. I think we see Crowton’s hand at work when things are opened up, spread out, unpredictable. I think he’s getting overridden by Miles who appears – for whatever reason – to be hell bent on running the ball up the gut no matter what. Even if it is Crowton, somebody (Miles) has got to step up and acknowledge that our O-Line isn’t good enough and gameplan around it using all of the other weapons we have.

Virginia Tech started out with the same mindset this year. They tried to make their QB (smaller version of JJ) a pocket passer. It was miserable. Finally, somebody stepped up, accepted reality and changed the way they utilize their weapons. The results have been astonishing offensive production against good teams.

by Deluded on Oct 11, 2009 1:53 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Here's the long and short of it

It’s not just Crowton. It’s not just Miles. It’s both. The national title this team won a couple of years ago was a product of a year of frequent upsets that put LSU in a position to play for it even with two losses. While there’s no question in my mind that Miles is capable of recruiting good talent, he’s always going to be stuck with the label of winning with Saban’s boys by those who want to discredit him.

All of this said, I was at Tiger Stadium last night and didn’t get to get a good view of what was being called penalties. If you’re getting a lot of penalty calls on offense and defense, you’re usually not going to win that game. LSU could have gotten a possession in the second half much earlier than they did if not for the face mask call. Florida’s defense deserves a lot of credit, but you have to look at LSU for beating itself with penalties and horrible offensive play calling from the side lines.

And the eighth and final rule: if this is your first time at Fight Club, you have to fight.

by Ace Venom on Oct 11, 2009 9:32 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Florida's Offensive Production Last Night

No shame in losing to the #1 team in the country; only that we didn’t appear to do all we could to win.

QUESTION: Anybody know what Florida’s avg per game yardage and points production were before last night? Memory is that it was sky high, and I think we held them to about 50% of their normal yardage production and under 50% of their normal point production.

Anybody got the stats on that?

by Deluded on Oct 11, 2009 5:35 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

are you claiming moral victory?

by Zandor435 on Oct 12, 2009 8:58 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Not a "Moral" Victory . . .

. . . so much as a benchmark of improvement both from last season and over the course of this season thus far.

by Deluded on Oct 12, 2009 10:06 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

SHORT ANSWER TO MY OWN QUESTION

Fla. Stats Before LSU Game

Avg Yds/Game: 526.3

Avg Points/Game: 45.5

vs LSU

Yardage: 327

Points: 13

In other words, we held them to 62% of their avg yardage production and 28.5% of their avg point production

UNFORTUNATELY, they held our already anemic offense to 50% of avg yardage production and just over 11% of our avg. point production.

Add to the equation that they cut their avg penalty production by 14% and ours went up by 47%

by Deluded on Oct 13, 2009 8:01 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

In reference to previous comments....

I made a statement earlier out of frustration about Les saying it was time for him to go. I was extremely frustrated at the performance of LSU last night and honestly have been all year. When I see the lineup we have, I see so much potential that we should be blowing people off of the map. Florida is not a better football team than LSU, but they are better coached and showed a whole lot more discipline. Now understand, I know that several of their players have been around a while and LSU is still a young team, but alot of the mistakes which were made like the back to back offsides penalties were totally unnecesary. Not only did it set them back, it totally threw Jefferson out of his rhythm. In reference to some comments made about the 2007 team, sorry, this team is not nearly at the potential of the 2007 team, in a year or two possibly, but at this time, no they are not. For one thing, the majority of that team was seniors which had played for years. We also had some of the best talent in the SEC in several key positions that year. We’ve got a good lineup now, but they are young and they are going to have to be coached and gain the experience by playing in games like the one last night. LSU cannot slide by, they’ve got to get out there and roll the sleeves up and get down and dirty. Bottom line is Florida outplayed us in every aspect of the game last night. Florida beat us, not Tebow. The offense, the defense, the coaching, in all aspects they beat us. Honestly, I’m surprised we did not get beat worse. We are about where we need to be right now. At number 10. Until we earn the right, we should not be ranked any higher. Granted, LSU is still one of the best teams in the nation, we’re not good enough to be in the top ten. There are teams out there who are blowing away really good teams and they are not ranked as high as we are. They are better teams. I’m not knocking LSU, but I am stating what I have seen thus far this year, we’re mediocre. Tons of talent, but they are not working together and we’re being outplayed by teams whom are not as good as we are, but nonetheless, they are playing better. If LSU would hit on all cylinders, we would be hard for any team including Alabama, Florida, Texas, or any of the other top teams to beat, but we’ve got to come together as a team. In saying that, it is the coach’s job to bring the team together and Les and crew are not doing that. As I said before the Florida game, we’ve got to stop playing sporadically and start playing four quarters of football. Yes I do get agitated because I know the potential of our players and they’re just not showing the talent that they have. Maybe I am expecting too much, but honestly I don’t think so, I believe in our guys and I’m willing to be openminded about Les, but he’s got to tighten things up and get the guys working together. As for comparison via Les and Saban, was not a direct comparison, but I will say this, As much of a turncoat that Saban is, I have to admire the fact that the man is one heck of a coach. He knows how to build good solid football programs and to win games. He has no loyalty about himself which is why alot of LSU fans don’t have much use for him, but he did turn around our program while he was at LSU and he’s doing the same at Alabama, so honestly, the guy knows what he’s doing, the problem he has is it is not about being a teamplayer, it’s about him. His actions showed all of us that. On the other hand, there are alot of things about Les that I do like alot. He’s a good guy and he’s very loyal to our program, but on the other hand, he wants to build his own legacy and quit having Saban brought up to him, well, now that all of Saban’s recruits are gone, build up and show everyone you can win the SEC a BCS championship with your recruits. If Les could do this, believe me, noone could ever bring up Nick Saban to him again. Unfortunately, a good many of the players on the 2007 team where recruits Saban brought in so alot of people have always brought that fact up.

by dsrimages on Oct 11, 2009 11:33 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

He knows how to build good solid football programs and to win games.

Saban is good at building a football program. However, he lost at home to UAB on my 18th birthday so I will always hold a grudge for him ruining that day for me. He is a great coach, but not really the legend you have in your mind.

by shelby924 on Oct 12, 2009 9:02 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Noone says he's a legend....

He is a good coach though, I can’t take that away from him, but he has no loyalty about him whatsoever. If the money was right, he’d be telling Alabama bye tomorrow, just the way he is.

by dsrimages on Oct 12, 2009 10:15 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Maybe I missed your point

I was having a hard time following your train of thought.

by shelby924 on Oct 12, 2009 10:27 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

It's hard to throw in all thoughts on a message....lol....

Sometimes I tend to throw too much out in one message which gets confusing. Basically my thoughts are Les isn’t a bad coach, but he’s not a great coach either. In some ways, he’s right on, but in others, he’s lacking. I honestly believe we have the potential to be a much better football team. In reference to Saban is all I was saying is he does have a good game plan on how to build and has something to build from. If Les would do the same, I’m sure his coaching would improve a 100%.

by dsrimages on Oct 12, 2009 12:19 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs