Picking Up Pieces

Some random and not-so-random thoughts.

Troy Game Moved to Nov 15th. Good call. I have mixed feelings, but it's a good call. I think the staff and the team need some time to put the facilities back together and get the practice rhythm back. And Troy is a good enough team to sneak up on the Tigers while they are distracted and cause trouble.

I would have liked to have seen an extra week of the QB battle prior to Auburn. I think both Hatch and Lee could use two more games prior to Auburn. But do they NEED two more? Tough to tell. We'll see. My concern is that North Texas is not going to be as tough an opponent as Troy would have been. So the QBs won't get tested in the same way. Testing is what they need.

However, it was a good call. Although it's tough to remember at this time of year, there are priorities above Tiger football. Seriously. I wouldn't make that up.

So this is a great call.

Recruiting: Christine Michael vs. Trent Richardson. There is a very interesting football recruiting story brewing under the radar right now. The Tigers already have two very, very good running backs on the commitment list. And both seem very solid at this time. Dexter Pratt from Texas and Michael Ford from LA are both high 4 star recruits who provide next year's recruiting class with a solid mix of running style and skill sets. Pratt is a big back with some speed, Ford is a smaller back with tons of speed and cutback capability. Technically, LSU doesn't need another RB in this class. Which is why LSU has aggressively gone after Alex Singleton, a FB candidate from East St John.

However, Christine Michael - a 5 star from Texas - has made it clear in multiple interviews and on his myspace page that he'd jump on a committable offer from LSU. So why doesn't Michael have such an offer? Well, apparently not because LSU doesn't want another RB. Rather, it seems that LSU is holding a possible third RB spot open in case they can get Trent Richardson to decommit from Alabama and become a Tiger. Richardson is also a 5 star RB and he has recently made comments that lead one to believe that he's still in play and LSU is one of a few schools he's looking at.

The difference between Michael and Richardson is running style. Michael is a Ford-style of runner and LSU is very happy with Ford. Richardson, however, is more of a hybrid type of back like Richard Murphy. So the staff is likely holding out because Richardson fits a need better than Michael. At the end of the day, I'm becoming more and more convinced that LSU would be happy taking one or none of these two backs. So they're waiting for Richardson to solidify his intent before providing Michael with a committable offer. If Michael decides to stop waiting and commit elsewhere, then I think the staff is fine with it and happy with the two RB commits on the board right now.

It's an interesting story that may be the most watched recruiting drama in LSU's 09 class closer to national signing day.

Tennessee Autoerotica. WTF? Somebody revoke Tennessee's permit for playing football in the Pac-10. How does the SEC "Sleeper Team of the Year" according to various and sundry pundits lose to a team that throws 4 first half interceptions? What happened to Tennessee's defense? I thought their secondary was one of the best in the country? I thought the Vol offensive line was strong? If you watched this game, you understand my frustration. The Vols should've won this game by 14. They just choked themselves repeatedly.

If you didn't watch the game - good on ya. Do yourself a favor and block Tennessee football on your TV's parental controls. Because they suck in a very pornographic manner.

USC is Number 1? Really? Sure. Why not. Many LSU fans hate USC. So the reaction in some circles to USC jumping up to #1 in the polls was quick and predictably negative. The narrative is that the media loves USC so they prop them up. Maybe. LA is a media hotspot, full of media elites. There's probably a grain of truth in this. But it doesn't follow that USC has been placed on top because of it.

I'd argue that, short of evidence to the contrary, USC deserves the #1 spot for now. No team has won more games in the last half decade. Few if any teams have recruited better. Few if any teams have ended their seasons in higher position over the past few seasons. And USC is loaded this year. Again.

USC crushed a BCS opponent. CRUSHED them. Say what you want about running up the score and such (and I'd agree). But the result of that game is undeniable.

It's very early in the season. I really could not care any less where USC is ranked right now. If they beat Ohio State and run the table in their conference, then they'll be #1 anyway.

If Georgia runs the table as well, then we'll have a controversy on our hands. And at that point, I'll join the public outcry.

But it's too early right now and too inconsequential. Congrats to USC. Really.

But who cares? There's lots more football ahead. Including Stanford...