Ad Disclosure
Frank Wilson is done and gone from LSU, but he may still provide an assist this week.
After Wilson’s Texas-San Antonio Road Runners routed Southern Mississippi, 55-32, last week, the former LSU recruiting coordinator and running backs coach got his usual weekly phone call from his pal from LSU, interim head coach Ed Orgeron.
Orgeron’s Tigers happen to be USM’s next opponent.
“Well, I did talk to Coach Frank, and I complimented him,” said Orgeron, who shares plenty of traits with the UTSA head man, starting with the fact that they both centered their coaching reputation around their recruiting abilities. “I watched his game. Especially I liked the way his offense has some explosive plays on them. I know his team competed very well.”
Orgeron came to LSU as defensive line coach last year but was not recruiting coordinator, a position he excelled in at USC where he was national recruiter of the year in 2004. That’s because Wilson was already at LSU and was also one of the most respected recruiters in the game. When Wilson left for UTSA after the 2015 season, Orgeron moved into the recruiting coordinator role.
That didn’t last long as Orgeron became interim head coach after a 2-2 start.
“As you know, (Wilson) and I are very good friends. I talk to him every Sunday,” Orgeron said. “So I did make a call to him (Sunday) night and I talked to him, and he did warn me that those guys are going to be ready to play, and I knew they would.”
If LSU doesn’t have enough edges against a Conference USA opponent, having a scouting report from the last opponent is now among them.
When Southern Miss has the ball
USM QB Nick Mullens vs. LSU pass defense: Mullens is the reigning Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year and is putting up big numbers again this season. But he comes into the LSU game a little banged up.
Mullens, who has thrown for 1,874 yards and 16 touchdowns with eight interceptions this season, suffered a thumb injury against UTSA when he hit his hand against an opponent’s helmet and is questionable for Saturday. If he can’t go, the job goes to junior Parker Adamson, a junior who has thrown 12 passes this year after not playing at all in 2015. Let’s put that in perspective. Adamson has 38 career passing yards and Mullens has 10,596.
If Mullens can play, this will be an interesting challenge for an LSU secondary coming off a stellar performance in a 42-7 win over Missouri and SEC passing leader Drew Lock. It’s also a good tune-up for the Tigers’ upcoming game against Chad Kelly and Ole Miss.
First order of business? Pressure Mullens, which is something LSU is equipped to do with one of college football’s best pass-rushers in Arden Key (7 sacks) leading the way.
Edge: LSU
USM RBs vs. LSU rush defense: Ito Smith (119 rushes, 711 yards) is a talented back who can also hurt opponents in the passing game. His 19 receptions would actually lead LSU in receiving, although he has played one more game.
But the Golden Eagles are running into a stiff challenge from an LSU defense that is third in the SEC and 18th in the nation, allowing 108.2 rushing yards per game. With a talented, experienced defensive front and a linebacker group led by a veteran future NFL player in Kendell Beckwith, the Tigers will be the biggest challenge the Golden Eagles’ rushing attack will face this year.
Edge: LSU
USM WRs vs. LSU secondary: Mullens lost some of his favorite receivers from last year’s team, and USM replaced them with junior college transfers Allenzae Staggers (23 receptions, 562 yards, 5 TDs) and Isaiah Jones (11, 227, 2). Senior D.J. Thompson (25, 291, 4) is the one holdover among the top three receivers. He was third on the team in receiving last year.
LSU, on the other hand, returned most of its secondary talent and has put together a veteran group. Tre’Davious White may be the best cornerback Staggers faces this year. Kevin Toliver and Donte Jackson are also first-rate cover specialists and Jamal Adams is a future high NFL Draft pick at safety.
Getting open isn’t easy for anybody against LSU.
Edge: LSU
When LSU has the ball
LSU QB Danny Etling vs. USM pass defense: Etling has been an improvement for the LSU passing game since becoming the starter in Week 2, but his numbers (59-of-101, 649 yards, 3 TDs, 1 interception) are still pretty modest.
And he’s up against what is, on paper, a pretty good pass defense. Not only do the Golden Eagles only allow 156.3 passing yards a game (10th in the FBS), they pressure the quarterback with 19 sacks already, including five from senior nose tackle Dylan Bradley. LSU’s offensive line is banged up, so look for USM to try to get after the Tigers’ quarterback.
Edge: Even
LSU RBs vs. USM rush defense: This could be the biggest mismatch of the game. With or without star tailback Leonard Fournette, LSU has one of the better rushing offenses in college football, averaging 237 yards a game.
Fournette (67 carries, 386 yards, 2 TDs), who has already missed two of LSU’s five games, is questionable with a nagging ankle injury. In his absence, Derrius Guice (46, 402, 4) has been every bit as effective. Even with injuries, LSU’s offensive line is bigger and should be more physical than a Southern Miss front that was gashed for 339 yards by UTSA.
Edge: LSU
LSU WRs vs. USM DBs: It’s the same old question for LSU’s receivers: When will the production match the talent?
So far, veterans Travin Dural (18 receptions, 176 yards, 1 TD) and Malachi Dupre (15, 136) have put up modest numbers after coming into the season as one of the league’s most potentially dangerous duos. The good news is a viable third receiver has emerged in D.J. Chark (10, 133, 1).
They’ll face a Southern Miss secondary full of veterans. Hybrid linebacker-safety D’Nerius Antoine (36 tackles), corners Curtis Mikell (2 interceptions) and Cornell Armstrong (4 PBUs) and safeties Picasso Nelson and Devonta Foster are all seasoned talents.
With the know-how in the back end, it’s not safe to automatically assume that this will be the game LSU’s receivers break out. The Golden Eagles should be good enough to at least make the Tigers work for it.
Edge: Even
Special Teams
Southern Miss has a couple of pretty nice weapons in kicker Parker Shaunfield (10-for-10 with a long of 49) and punter Tyler Sarrazin (43.6 average), two specialists who have outperformed their LSU counterparts, Colby Delahoussaye (who has had two PATs blocked and has two missed field goals) and Josh Growden (40.2 yards per punt).
But something to pay attention to in this kind of game is the quality of coverage and return teams. Often, power conference teams find their best depth advantage on special teams. Earlier this season, White returned a punt for a touchdown against Jacksonville State, an example of where LSU had perhaps better depth to supply quality players for special teams relative to what JSU could muster.
In this game, Southern Miss has been outkicking LSU so far this season, but expect that to be offset some by the Tigers’ across-the-board quality on both coverage and return teams.
Edge: Even
