I wrote stories on all of these in the preseason and during spring practice, and after the Bulldogs’ 29-7 loss in Baton Rouge, the answers are just as murky as they were before the first snap of the season was played.
In fact, even the offensive line, which was considered the offense’s strongest unit, has been suspect at times. With the quarterbacks under pressure most of the night, the LSU defense feasted with five interceptions. With zero interceptions as a team before Saturday’s contest, LSU went from a tie for last in the FBS in interceptions to a tie for ninth in just one game.
The quarterback situation has become even more of a concern after junior Chris Relf left Saturday’s game after a hard hit in the third quarter. With injury information from Mullen at a premium this season, we likely won’t know Relf’s true status for Saturday until, well, Saturday.
If Russell takes another beating like he did in Baton Rouge on Saturday, Bulldog fans may see freshman Dylan Favre debut earlier than expected.
Playing on the road against a top 15 team, the Bulldog offense was expected to struggle at least a little bit. What wasn’t expected was the offense coughing up five turnovers that gave LSU the ball in terrific field position.
Les Miles’ offense average starting field position was the MSU 48 yard line, which left the Bulldog defense trying to hold for field goals instead of forcing punts; the Tigers kicked five field goals, while only having to punt one time.
The Bulldogs’ most efficient offensive plays came on the ground Saturday night, as Relf was the team’s leading rusher with 46 yards. Robert Elliott, Vick Ballard and LaDarius Perkins split the load out of the backfield almost into exact thirds, with Ballard scoring the only touchdown for the Bulldogs.
When compared to the passing game, the running game was relatively successful for the Bulldogs, which made many fans wonder why Mullen continued to put Relf and Russell in the line of fire.
On a 3rd-and-1 in the second quarter with the Bulldogs driving on the LSU 36-yard line, Mullen decided to abandon the run game and pick on All-American cornerback Patrick Peterson. The result of the play was a Relf interception as Peterson took the ball from the overmatched Arceto Clark. The Bulldogs did not have another scoring opportunity the rest of the half.
Plays such as that 3rd-and-1 call indicate that both the running backs and the receivers lack a strong identity. Last year, it would have been Anthony Dixon up the middle at least 80 percent of the time on 3rd-and-1, but this year there is no running back in the offense that is seen as a short-yardage ball carrier.
Also, the fact that Mullen called a play for a sophomore against one of the best cornerbacks in the nation shows that he is not comfortable with his more experienced receivers such as Chad Bumphis, Leon Berry and Brandon Heavens.
It is easy for me to be an armchair quarterback and criticize the call after the play went down the drain, but the call itself signals that the offense is lacking a true identity.
With that said, it is still early in the season for the Bulldogs, and it only takes one break-out game by an individual to discover a “go to” player. Until that happens, the questions regarding the Bulldogs’ skill positions will continue the rest of the season.