10. Chavis, Year Two. It remains to be seen if Defensive Coordinator John Chavis is the guy to return LSU’s defense to elite status. Yes, he’s a veteran of SEC play, but LSU’s best defenses were crafted by guys who won national titles at ages 32 (Will Muschamp) and 40 (Bo Pelini). Experience may not matter so much these days. But if the 53-year-old Chavis has the goods, it’ll show a lot more in year two. Having just four senior starters might help this defense, as the younger guys are more molded to Chavis’ scheme.
9. Tight Ends. Not only does LSU have a guy playing the position that is a good receiver (Deangelo Peterson), the Tigers now have a coach in Billy Gonzales who realizes tight ends are eligible to catch passes. Under Gonzales, Florida’s Aaron Hernandez set a school record for catches by a tight end in 2009 (68). To put that in perspective, Brandon LaFell lead LSU with 58 catches last year. Only four receivers have ever caught more than 68 passes in a year for LSU. Richard Dickson and Peterson combined for 26 catches last season, which is historically a lot for LSU tight ends. Converted defensive end Chase Clement is said to be a catcher as well, and Richard’s little brother Travis Dickson could be in the mix, too. Opening up the tight end option could go a long way in reviving the offense.
8. Bodies. By all accounts, LSU’s players have been taking advantage of the program’s weight room recently. Guys who were under-sized for their positions have bulked up (Josh Dworaczyk up 20 pounds at left guard, Michael Brockers up 30 pounds to move from defensive end to defensive tackle) while guys like defensive ends Sam Montgomery (down 10 pounds to 250) and Lavar Edwards (down 30 pounds) have slimmed down for their spots. And Patrick Peterson added 15 pounds of speed, it seems. A lot of lip service is given to off-season preparation when teams regroup in the fall, but it seems like these Tigers’ off-season body shaping is real.
7. Young Guys. Beyond the sophomores everybody knows will make an impact – Russell Shepard and Rueben Randle on offense, Lavar Edwards and Mo Claiborne on defense – there’s a ton of talent among freshmen and sophomores that could make its way to the field. Running back Michael Ford stands the best chance to make an impact with Richard Murphy and Stevan Ridley being questionable featured backs. True freshmen Spencer Ware and Jakhari Gore could get in the mix if the running game doesn’t come together. LSU’s fullback problems (Dominique Allen) could put highly-touted freshman Brandon Worle on a fast track as well. Defensively, the Tigers list 13 redshirt freshmen on the depth chart. More on the defensive line guys in a second, but redshirt freshmen Craig Loston and Drayton Calhoun could have big impacts in the defensive backfield, and the coaching staff is already saying good things about the four true freshmen joining the secondary.
6. O-Line Mix. I might be way off on this one. Though LSU loses Ciron Black and Lyle Hitt this season, as a whole this line seems more balanced and “deeper” than a year ago. Last season it seemed like too much was put on Black and Hitt as the stalwarts of an otherwise shallow set of linemen. Dworaczyk and Joseph Barksdale are the experienced anchors on the left side. P.J. Lonergan is likely a starter upgrade over T-Bob Hebert at center. On the right side, Will Blackwell and Alex Hurst step up to starting roles and need to deliver. LSU is deeper at tackle (redshirt freshman Chris Faulk and freshman Evan Washington) than at guard (converted tight end Matt Branch and former three-star recruit Josh Williford), but this season I think the coaches will be less hesitant to throw more bodies into the mix and see what works.
5. Shepard / Randle. Not really going out on a limb here. But the combination of Russell Shepard being able to attack defenses from every which way and Rueben Randle presenting a traditional big-receiver threat could help break the LSU offense wide open. These are two guys who defenses will have to shut down. It’ll be hard to shut down both.
4. Billy Gonzales. I’d put the addition of Billy Gonzales to the staff as No. 1 if he was LSU’s offensive coordinator rather than just “passing game coordinator”. But you have to figure he’ll be given enough latitude to really shake up the aerial game. He could use a little deeper receiving corps, but he can dip into the freshmen ranks and work Kadron Boone or three other incoming receivers into the mix if Toliver, Randle, Tolliver, Shepard and D. Peterson aren’t enough weapons for him.
3. Defensive Front. At first glance, this looks like a weakness, with just one returning starter – Pep Levingston – in the front four, and he’s switching from end to tackle. But the changing dynamic and emerging talent here could make LSU’s front a powerful one this season. Juco transfer Kendrick Adams was named the starter at left end, and between him and Barkevious Mingo I see a lot of speed and power coming from that side. Likewise, the slimmed-down Lavar Edwards has highly-regarded redshirt freshman Sam Montgomery behind him at right end. Those four guys are all quick, strong and talented enough to throw constant, fresh-legged pressure on the edges. Levingston and fellow senior Drake Nevis should be solid in the middle, with a lot of young talent behind them. Les Miles saw fit to draw up the left tackle depth chart with five guys on it; the right with three. I see a lot more pressure coming from up front this year.
2. Patrick Peterson. A lot is resting on the shoulders of Peterson, both in the defensive secondary and the kick/punt return game. And he seems like a legit superstar. If he can take away opponents’ main receiving threat on defense and shift field position in LSU’s favor in the return game, the Tigers will stand a fighting chance in any game.
1. Motivation. The Tigers are teetering on irrelevance, with Alabama and Florida dominating the SEC and Auburn and Arkansas seen as rising programs in the West. Only seven of the 62 guys listed on the depth chart played in the 2007 national championship season; the rest of the guys only know 8-5 and/or 9-4. They haven’t beaten Florida or Alabama, but they watched as each of them won national titles. They know how bad the offense was and how average the defense was last year, but they also know the team was within reach of 11 or 12 wins had a few things gone down differently. And they know they have a chance to turn it all around this year. Ranked 16th to open the season, they face a do-or-die(ish) game to open the year against No. 18 North Carolina. Pass that test and the season is in your control. Lose it and all the pressure in the world begins to come down on the program. The absolute requirement to start strong will hopefully bring a focus and cohesion to a talented but young team that’s struggled to bring it all together the past two seasons.
