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OK, let’s give this a shot.
Um, Sammy Bearkat? Wait, that’s the mascot. Sorry.
Sam Houston State actually is the 15th-ranked FCS team, considered a viable playoff candidate after losing to then-No. 1 Eastern Washington by one point on the road to start the season.
Most of the team’s best players are on offense.
1. WR LaDarius Brown: The TCU transfer was a four-star recruit out of Waxahachie, Texas. Listed at 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, Sam Houston State will throw the ball to him on screens and quick slants, trying to utilize his height advantage over the LSU corners. He tied for the TCU team lead with 36 catches in 2013.
2. RB Keshawn Hill: A career backup with an intriguing rushing average, Hill, a 5-foot-10, 200-pound senior, has waited his entire college career for this opportunity. He also returns kicks and catches occasional passes out of the backfield.
3. DE Mouf Adebo: He led the Bearkats with 11 tackles for loss in 2013, earning third-team status on Phil Steele’s Freshman All-America team. Listed at 6-foot-1 and 230 pounds and operating in Sam Houston State’s base 4-2-5 defense, Adebo is more of a pass-rush threat and LSU should be able to manhandle him — if the tackles can make sure he doesn’t slide past with a quick first step.
4. WR Yedidiah Lewis: The 5-foot-8 redshirt freshman has deceptive strength at 187 pounds. A multisport athlete in high school, he played both running back and receiver, making him a good fit for Sam Houston State’s “catch-and-run” schemes. Lewis also caught a team-high 13 passes for 104 yards in the first two games.
5. LB Tristan Eche: The 5-foot-10, 201-pound junior’s days as a special teams standout are over. Eche leads the team with 13.5 tackles, including 2.5 for loss, through two games.
An itinerant journalist, Christopher has moved between states 11 times in seven years. Formally an injury-prone Division I 800-meter specialist, he now wanders the Rockies in search of high peaks.
