Well, it's a new year and yes, Poseur lives. It's been three back surgeries for those of you scoring at home, but I'm finally walking upright without leaking spinal fluid. It turns out that leaking spinal fluid can kill you, so it's a good thing I got that kncoked out. I've been pretty far out of the loop because I've been in the hopsital and then on a steady dose of powerful narcotics. But I thought I'd check in with some general thoughts since I dropped off the grid.
I'm Not Sure Florida Realizes They Are A College Team. The Gators have made all sorts of noise by hiring two pro coaches as their co-ordinators,Charlie Weis and Dan Quinn. That sounds great and all, and Florida will certainly sell the whole "pro coaches" thing, but when I hear "pro coach", I think "lousy recruiter." Weis is an easy to dislike, arrogant fellow, who didn't exactly set the world on fire the last time he brought his "decided schematic advantage" to college. I know Muschamp is a pretty good recruiter, but I think pro coaches underestimate how much of their life is going to be spent sucking up to 16-year-olds once they deign to grace the college ranks with their presence. I'm not saying they cannot be successful, but I'm initially skeptical. College programs live and die by their recruiting, and Florida now has a questionable recruiter at each co-ordinator position. Counterpoint, neither Chavis or Crowton are known as top flight recruiters, and LSU does okay in that department.
Boy, Does Ohio St. Look Silly Right Now. I think how a conference or a team does in the bowls is the single most overrated thing in college football. Show me a team that won their bowl game, and I'll show you a team that is likely to be overrated in next season's preseason. That said, the Big Ten had a humiliating New Years Day. Not only did they go 0-5, only Wisconsin and Penn St. had decent showings (yes, I know the final score of the Northwestern game was close, but that was a garbage time comeback. Tech could name their score in that one). Now, the Big Ten's "honor" falls to the team with a university president who shot off his mouth in their first place about the Little Sisters of the Poor. Outside of the Title Game, no team needs a bowl win more than Ohio St, given the circumstances.
Ha Ha. I Was Right. I'd like to take this space to remind you that I picked a 10-win season and a near top ten finish. Not all of my reasoning panned out, but the best reason did: it's more fun to believe. To all of you nattering nabobs of negativity in the LSU fanbase... go suck an egg. We were right, you were wrong. Ha ha ha.
Oh Yeah, 10-2 May Not Cut It Next Year. While I'm thrilled with how this season panned out, now that we have some distance from the Arkansas loss... the expectation bar has been officially raised around these parts. This is a young team with a lot of parts coming back. Auburn is definitely going to take a step back from their margical season. LSU has every reason to be considered one of the front runners for the West title, and should be judged next season as such. A nice 10-win season and visit to the Cotton Bowl bought some goodwill, but next year is the year we have circled. Miles needs to get us back to Atlanta, or at least have it come down to the final weekend.
The Cotton Bowl Is Unfair, But It's Totally Cool. Texas A&M gets a larger bowl payout, has received more student tickets, and because they accepted a bid before LSU, A&M fans have bought up most of the general admission tickets and a large majority of the tailgating passes. And I think that is sort of awesome. Texas knows where their bread is buttered, and they have bent over backwards for the Aggies. And well they should, so I'm not the least bit mad or even complaining., just pointing out the situation. We're entering enemy territory, not a neutral site. Which means we have to be extra loud, folks. This is state pride on the line. A&M and LSU is an old school rivalry, and it needs to be brought back. Every season.
Ridley Is Eligible. Per TSD, LSU will have its monster in the backfield. I couldn't be more excited, as my man crush on Ridley grows with each passing week. Patrick Peterson is our best player, Kelvin Sheppard is our heart and soul, but Stevan Ridley is my favorite Tiger. He just specializes in effort runs.
Kneel Before Zod. Last chance on Friday. Peterson could very well be the most talented player in LSU history. I think he's going to go down in LSU lore like a guy like Michael Brooks, just someone people talk about in hushed tones for years. Peterson would be crazy to come back for his senior year with the impending rookie salary cap, so let's just enjoy his last game in the purple and gold. Thanks for the memories. Same with all of the seniors, especially the Cookie Monster. But Zod leaves us early. You know its the right thing for him, so its impossible to be upset, but it is a shame his stay was so short.