Welcome everyone to the first game preview for the LSU Tigers as they get ready to take on BYU! Every week, we look at who the Tigers will be facing off against and some storylines that you need to watch for and what each team will need to do in order to get the win.
Last Week: The BYU Cougars got their season started off last Saturday in “week zero” action with a 20-6 victory over Portland State by the score of 20-6.
Last Meeting: This is the first ever meeting between these two teams.
What to Watch For:
Possible Aerial Attack: With LSU’s new offensive coordinator Matt Canada, it looks like LSU’s offense might not be as run-heavy and predictable as it had been in the final years of the Les Miles regime. Also having a player like Danny Etling starting for the Tigers doesn’t hurt them based off what he did last year. The only question is how good will he be after having back surgery. The offensive line will need to work twice as hard keeping Etling vertical because of this and also the lack of depth at the position.
Looking at BYU, Tanner Mangum surprised a lot of people as a freshman throwing for over 3,000 yards back in 2015. He only started in five games last year and looks to return to form. That being said, his performance against Portland State was less than ideal with only 194 yards off 16 completions. The Cougars will have rely heavily on their QB’s performance on Saturday against a pretty strong front seven that will be playing inside the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
Guice, Guice, Baby: While there may be a new offensive coordinator, expect to see Derrius Guice be the sun that this offense revolves around in 2017. He seems to be ready to take the field after undergoing wisdom teeth surgery about a week ago and that’s a big positive for this offense. The junior running back was used as the feature back largely out of necessity due to Leonard Fournette’s injury-laden season and showed the fans that the future of the position is in very capable hands. If that player shows up, that might be the deciding factor for LSU on Saturday
Age Isn’t Anything But a Number: While one of the bigger talking points for this game has been the fact that the Cougars on the roster are a little bit older than the typical player at LSU. However, it shouldn’t be as big of a deal as it is because of the fact that if you’re a twenty-year old freshman you will likely play like a freshman and you being a certain age isn’t really going to change that. Sure they won’t get into nearly as much trouble off the field, but that won’t instantly make someone a good player.
LSU Will Win If:
The Tigers will start the season off 1-0 if the offensive line holds up. One of the biggest issues for this team throughout fall camp has been the lack of true depth at the position with only 11 scholarship players on the current roster. Having that line keep control of the ballgame would be huge for not only the run game, but if you can keep Etling vertical long enough it gives him opportunities to show his full bag of tricks.
BYU Will Win If:
The Cougars can make it 2-0 and get their first ranked win in two years if their rushing defense is there. While they were up against Portland State, holding any team to 86 yards rushing is something to look at. However, the Cougars still have an uphill climb against a defense like LSU’s.
-Clint Domingue