Welcome everyone to the latest edition of #4Downs where I break down what went right and what went wrong for LSU! This week, I’m looking at the LSU Tigers win over Ole Miss.
1st Down: Grant Delpit Continues to Ball Out
Grant Delpit was literally everywhere he could be on Saturday night in Tiger Stadium. He struck again with an early interception that may not have resulted in points on the board, but he set the tone on the defensive side of the ball with that play. Add the fact that he wound up with 2.5 tackles for loss, including an impressive sack on Jordan Ta’amu where he was originally knocked down, but wound up still getting after the Rebels QB.
The sophomore continues to show how great of a safety he can really be with performances like Saturday’s and the Auburn game.
2nd Down: Spreading the Wealth
It’s safe to say that LSU has no problem finding targets in the passing game with Saturday seeing 10 different receivers have one reception. While the actual divvying up of the receptions is a little more skewed to Justin Jefferson and Stephen Sullivan, there seems to be more of a desire to spread it out to really see who are the beasts amongst a wide receiver corps.
Back in January, offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger mentioned that the wide receivers were the biggest strength they have on offense. Well, after five games, I can’t help but agree with him and they looked great with a total of 292 yards through the air.
3rd Down: Third Quarter Malaise Continues
While the second half woes weren’t nearly as bad as they were last week against Louisiana Tech when the Bulldogs got within a field goal, it’s still a point of concern, especially with several high-caliber opponents making their way down to Tiger Stadium after the Florida game.
4th Down: Dual Threat Burrow, Who Knew?
We all know that Joe Burrow can be a mobile quarterback when he needs to. However, I didn’t realize how well he can perform on the run but Saturday’s performance solidified that as he led the team in rushing with 98 total yards.
Yes, he still won’t slide at times, but he was able to avoid any big hits and that’s a step in the right direction in my book.
Extra Point: Strong Start for the Tigers
Heading into the season, reasonable expectations for LSU was 8-4. Now this team is 5-0 headed into what could be a trap game against Florida. It’s one of their best starts for LSU since the 2015 season and they seem poised to push that win total even higher and possibly into the double digits which felt like a pipe dream headed into this year.
Coach Orgeron and the Tigers are proving that they have the potential to be the cream of the crop in the SEC. Now that the calendar has flipped to October, it’s time to see how they carry the momentum into this stretch.
-Clint Domingue