Eckwood43
05-10-2004, 10:21 AM
Position-by-position breakdown after the spring
Scott Rabalais of the Baton Rouge Advocate grades LSU by position after the spring........
Tigers find out where to improve
Spring football is finally over at LSU, and what have we learned? We know Marcus Spears rules, but what about Marcus Randall? Where will Melvin Oliver play? Or David Jones? Will LSU miss Donnie Jones? And who looks strong at safety?
To answer (hopefully) some of those questions, here's a position-by-position grading of the defending BCS national champions:
QUARTEREBACK, B: Talented redshirt freshman quarterbacks JaMarcus Russell and Matt Flynn showed flashes of brilliance, but neither was consistently dazzling enough to unseat Marcus Randall. The senior goes into the fall as the No. 1 quarterback. Whether he can stay there all season is another question but for now, the freshmen play follow the leader.
RUNNING BACK, A+: Wonder if the college football nation will rave about LSU's running back depth the way it did about Auburn last year? The Tigers don't have a Cadillac, just a garage full of really choice Buicks and Chevys in Justin Vincent, Alley Broussard, Joseph Addai, Shyrone Carey, Barrington Edwards and Jason Spadoni. If anything the Tigers got better here with Addai branching out as a receiver and Broussard improving his conditioning and speed.
WIDE RECEIVER, C: As in Concern. There is terrific talent like Skyler Green, Dwayne Bowe and Craig Davis, just not enough of it. Amp Hill (knee) remains gimpy, Bennie Brazell ran track this spring, and Early Doucet, Xavier Carter and Lavelle Hawkins are still in high school. Addai may be a big help, and so might cornerback Corey Webster to a lesser degree. Maybe the grade should be incomplete.
OFFENSIVE LINE, A: LSU lost two great starters (All-American Stephen Peterman and Rodney Reed) but may be better and deeper. "We have more guys who could be on the front five than we ever have," said left tackle Andrew Whitworth, a junior. "We have nine guys who have a chance to play."
Whitworth and center Ben Wilkerson are two of the nation's best, while starter Nate Livings goes from left guard to right tackle and Rudy Niswanger takes over at left guard. Terrell McGill and Brian Johnson will carry the fight for right guard into August.
TIGHT END, A: The flexible David Jones splits his time between this spot and fullback, but when Jones goes into the backfield, Keith Zinger is more than capable of taking over. Expect to see a lot of two tight sets from this duo.
DEFENSIVE LINE, B+: There is plenty of ability, just not a lot of able bodies. LSU ended the spring with just three dependable ends and tackles.
"If we're not fortunate to keep our players healthy," LSU coach Nick Saban said, "it could show on the field."
The left side of the line returns intact with Spears at left end and Kyle Williams at left tackle. Junior college transfer Claude Wroten takes over at right tackle and Melvin Oliver slides in at right end. On passing third downs, Oliver will annex one of the tackle spots while Kirston Pittman comes in at end to throw an extra gear of speed into the pass rush.
LINEBACKER, B+: Lionel Turner has made his mark as one of the Southeastern Conference's premier linebackers -- just ask Oklahoma quarterback Jason White. Weakside linebacker Cameron Vaughn is no weak link, though it is his time to really blossom going into his junior campaign.
Strongside linebacker remains to be sorted out. The early favorite looks like Miami Hurricanes transfer Ali Highsmith, a freshman, though redshirt freshman Darius Ingram remains a contender.
DEFENSIVE BACKS, A+: Along with O-line and running back, this is one of LSU's greatest strengths. The Tigers possess what is likely the nation's best pair of cornerbacks in seniors Travis Daniels and Webster.
LaRon Landry is back for his sophomore campaign after a brilliant debut. Replacing Jack Hunt at strong safety will be Jessie Daniels. Junior college transfer Mario Stevenson impressed in Saturday's Spring Game at cornerback and has evolved into LSU's Star (nickel) back. Cornerback Ronnie Prude, like Webster a potential two-way player at receiver, is the Money or dime back.
KICKING GAME, C-: For a pair of place-kickers, Ryan Gaudet and Chris Jackson might be able to take their juggling act on the road they've become so good at trading the kicking duties. First it was Gaudet, then Jackson, then Gaudet again in the SEC Championship Game and in the Nokia Sugar Bowl. Through the spring, the job remained up for grabs, which, if you're Saban, is hardly what you want. Patrick Fisher was line-driving punts all through spring practice (and hit one backward in the Spring Game), possibly opening up the job to Jackson. Suffice to say, neither kicking situation is satisfactory and as they stand now could cost LSU a game this season. Then again, we've said that before and it hasn't happened yet.
FINAL EXAM: Put it all together and this is a very talented team that if it answers questions at quarterback, receiver, kicker and on the defensive line could be a national championship contender again.
Those are a lot of ifs and most teams have them. But few have the tools that are at Saban's disposal.
Scott Rabalais of the Baton Rouge Advocate grades LSU by position after the spring........
Tigers find out where to improve
Spring football is finally over at LSU, and what have we learned? We know Marcus Spears rules, but what about Marcus Randall? Where will Melvin Oliver play? Or David Jones? Will LSU miss Donnie Jones? And who looks strong at safety?
To answer (hopefully) some of those questions, here's a position-by-position grading of the defending BCS national champions:
QUARTEREBACK, B: Talented redshirt freshman quarterbacks JaMarcus Russell and Matt Flynn showed flashes of brilliance, but neither was consistently dazzling enough to unseat Marcus Randall. The senior goes into the fall as the No. 1 quarterback. Whether he can stay there all season is another question but for now, the freshmen play follow the leader.
RUNNING BACK, A+: Wonder if the college football nation will rave about LSU's running back depth the way it did about Auburn last year? The Tigers don't have a Cadillac, just a garage full of really choice Buicks and Chevys in Justin Vincent, Alley Broussard, Joseph Addai, Shyrone Carey, Barrington Edwards and Jason Spadoni. If anything the Tigers got better here with Addai branching out as a receiver and Broussard improving his conditioning and speed.
WIDE RECEIVER, C: As in Concern. There is terrific talent like Skyler Green, Dwayne Bowe and Craig Davis, just not enough of it. Amp Hill (knee) remains gimpy, Bennie Brazell ran track this spring, and Early Doucet, Xavier Carter and Lavelle Hawkins are still in high school. Addai may be a big help, and so might cornerback Corey Webster to a lesser degree. Maybe the grade should be incomplete.
OFFENSIVE LINE, A: LSU lost two great starters (All-American Stephen Peterman and Rodney Reed) but may be better and deeper. "We have more guys who could be on the front five than we ever have," said left tackle Andrew Whitworth, a junior. "We have nine guys who have a chance to play."
Whitworth and center Ben Wilkerson are two of the nation's best, while starter Nate Livings goes from left guard to right tackle and Rudy Niswanger takes over at left guard. Terrell McGill and Brian Johnson will carry the fight for right guard into August.
TIGHT END, A: The flexible David Jones splits his time between this spot and fullback, but when Jones goes into the backfield, Keith Zinger is more than capable of taking over. Expect to see a lot of two tight sets from this duo.
DEFENSIVE LINE, B+: There is plenty of ability, just not a lot of able bodies. LSU ended the spring with just three dependable ends and tackles.
"If we're not fortunate to keep our players healthy," LSU coach Nick Saban said, "it could show on the field."
The left side of the line returns intact with Spears at left end and Kyle Williams at left tackle. Junior college transfer Claude Wroten takes over at right tackle and Melvin Oliver slides in at right end. On passing third downs, Oliver will annex one of the tackle spots while Kirston Pittman comes in at end to throw an extra gear of speed into the pass rush.
LINEBACKER, B+: Lionel Turner has made his mark as one of the Southeastern Conference's premier linebackers -- just ask Oklahoma quarterback Jason White. Weakside linebacker Cameron Vaughn is no weak link, though it is his time to really blossom going into his junior campaign.
Strongside linebacker remains to be sorted out. The early favorite looks like Miami Hurricanes transfer Ali Highsmith, a freshman, though redshirt freshman Darius Ingram remains a contender.
DEFENSIVE BACKS, A+: Along with O-line and running back, this is one of LSU's greatest strengths. The Tigers possess what is likely the nation's best pair of cornerbacks in seniors Travis Daniels and Webster.
LaRon Landry is back for his sophomore campaign after a brilliant debut. Replacing Jack Hunt at strong safety will be Jessie Daniels. Junior college transfer Mario Stevenson impressed in Saturday's Spring Game at cornerback and has evolved into LSU's Star (nickel) back. Cornerback Ronnie Prude, like Webster a potential two-way player at receiver, is the Money or dime back.
KICKING GAME, C-: For a pair of place-kickers, Ryan Gaudet and Chris Jackson might be able to take their juggling act on the road they've become so good at trading the kicking duties. First it was Gaudet, then Jackson, then Gaudet again in the SEC Championship Game and in the Nokia Sugar Bowl. Through the spring, the job remained up for grabs, which, if you're Saban, is hardly what you want. Patrick Fisher was line-driving punts all through spring practice (and hit one backward in the Spring Game), possibly opening up the job to Jackson. Suffice to say, neither kicking situation is satisfactory and as they stand now could cost LSU a game this season. Then again, we've said that before and it hasn't happened yet.
FINAL EXAM: Put it all together and this is a very talented team that if it answers questions at quarterback, receiver, kicker and on the defensive line could be a national championship contender again.
Those are a lot of ifs and most teams have them. But few have the tools that are at Saban's disposal.