Was very impressed with the Bulldogs watching their spring football game. They’re a good football team. Chris Relf looked so confident and he’s always had talent. At 6’4″, 245, he’s a load and he’s got a cannon for an arm. He has really taken to Dan Mullen’s system and will flourish in it this year. Last year, Relf led the Bulldogs to a nine win season blasting Michigan in the Gator Bowl, 52-14, beating Ole Miss for the third straight year and defeating Florida and Georgia. Relf completed 129-of-220 passes for 1,789 yards and 13 touchdowns with five ints. He also ran for 713 yards and five tds. He looked even better in the Spring. Don’t have his Spring game numbers, but the week before in a scrimmage he was 22 of 26 for 292 yards and a touchdown. He looked every bit as good in the Spring game as he did in the scrimmage. Tyler Russell is a highly capable backup. He’s more of a drop back passer who can also run some. Dylan Favre, a redshirt frosh and nephew of Brett Favre, looks like he’s going to be a stellar player as well at qb. He was very impressive in the spring game. He is a redshirt freshman, Relf is a senior and Russell is a sophomore. Dak Prescott, a true freshman who came in early, is also very impressive. He threw for 2,900 yards and 39 tds last year in high school in Louisiana. So State is set at quarterback in 2011.
Vick Ballard returns at running back where he gained 968 yards last year and scored 19 touchdowns. He’s 5’11”, 215, a freight train with speed. LaDarius Perkins backs up Ballard. The 5’10”, 190 back ran for 566 yards and three tds last year and had a very good spring. Fullback/running backs Sylvester Hemphill , 5’11” 235, and Adrian Marcus, 5’9″, 225, will also be power runners.

State is looking for some playmakers at wideout and they’ve got some highly capable candidates. Chad Bumphis caught 44 passes for 634 yards and five touchdowns last year. He’s 5’10”, 200 and he can fly. They need to get him downfield and in the open field. Arceto Clark is another. Clark caught 25 passes for 362 yards and three tds last year. Both players looked good in the Spring. Brandon Heavens, from Bessemer, looked stellar in the spring game and was a target on three or four of Relf’s nice throws. Heavens, another speedster, caught 22 passes for 316 yards last year and two touchdowns. Look for those numbers to go up this year. Ricco Sanders, a sophomore, is another guy who will add to the vertical game. He only caught two passes for 25 yards as a freshman last year, but one of them was for a touchdown and his receptions will go up this year. He’s a guy who might be able to break it in the open field. Jameon Lewis is a redshirt frosh and another guy they expect to perform well this year.

Offensive line is somewhat of a question mark. They lost left tackle Derek Sherrod (6’6″, 305) and will replace him with James Carmon (6’7″, 330). Looks like a pretty good exchange if Carmon plays up to his size. Other key linemen are Gabe Jackson and Tobias Smith.

In all, State returns 15 starters from last year’s team.

Defense looks solid. Last year’s defensive coordinator, Manny Diaz, left to take the d coordinator job at Texas, so Geoff Collins and Chris Wilson will run the defense. Wilson was co defensive coordinator last year and Collins coached the linebackers, so they will be fine in t he coaching area. Ferlando Bohanna, a 6’0″, 225 pound redshirt frosh linebacker, was all over the field in the Spring game. He at least had two sacks and dominated on defense in the spring game. Fletcher Cox, Shane McCardell and Sean Ferguson should be very good players on the interior dline. Cam Lawrence is another linebacker who is expected to excel this year. Defensive backs Charles Mitchell, Nickoe Whitley, Johnthan Banks and Damein Anderson are players in the secondary. Banks was all over the place in the Spring game and an excellent hitter and playmaker. State is replacing their two leading tacklers from a year ago, linebackers Chris White and K.J. Wright, but it looks like they have a shot to be pretty good on defense. They need to stay healthy though. There isn’t a ton of depth.

Dan Mullen has done an outstanding job at State. If he decides to stay a while, he could build a possible powerhouse in Starkville. He is an excellent offensive mind and has good coaches around him.

State’s biggest question marks are on the offensive line and big playmaking ability. They’ve got the talent to make the big plays, but the playmakers aren’t experienced making plays. There is potential there. O line has some big guys and Mullen has recruited well, so they should be fine. With Relf and Ballard, this should be a pretty good offense.

The Schedule:

State opens up at Memphis, Thursday, Sept.1, then has a huge game at Auburn. If they can knock off the Tigers, their season could get very interesting. They then play LSU at home and follow that with La Tech at home. Then they play Georgia at Athens, UAB in B’ham and South Carolina @ home. They go to Kentucky, play Tenn-Martin at home, at home against Alabama, go to Arkansas and play Ole Miss at home.

This could be another eight to nine win season. Can State challenge for a West title and a shot at Atlanta? It’ll be hard going to Georgia, going to Arkansas, playing what should be a very good Alabama team, South Carolina at home and on the road at Kentucky. The AU game at Auburn is difficult, too. But I think State could get eight wins out of it. Going to Atlanta may be a stretch, but this team is going to be very good. Mullen has already become one of the better coaches in the conference and maybe in the country. Eight wins and a New Years Day Bowl seem highly attainable. To do better, they’ll have to stay healthy and knock off some of the big boys. They’d have to beat an Auburn, a Georgia and Arkansas. Auburn is possible. Georgia maybe. They can beat South Carolina and Kentucky if healthy. Arkansas and Alabama pretty tough. Ten wins not out of  the question if this team can avoid key injuries.

Monday: Arkansas

(Chris Relf is clearly the man at quarterback for State and primed for a big year.)

I thought Barrett Trotter looked better overall. He didn’t protect the ball as well as Clint Moseley did, but he threw a nice deep ball to DeAngelo Benton on the opening play from scrimmage that was dropped, then a 24 yarder to Phillip Lutzenkirchen and a 19-yarder to Lutz for a td on the opening drive. He looks like the better quarterback to me. He’s got a strong arm. He fumbled twice on exchanges, but those were really the only mistakes he made. He made a nice deep throw to Quindarius Carr that Carr dropped. Pretty impressed with Trotter. Moseley made a couple of nice eight to 10 yard throws to Emory Blake, but didn’t show an ability to throw it downfield that well. He made a couple of nice throws over the middle though. Logan Paul played a lot, but he’s a non factor. Kiehl Frazier comes in this summer, but he’s not going to win the job. He has too much to learn. Trotter looks like the man. He’s got a strong arm, he can run some and I think he makes good decisions. Seems to have a high football IQ.
Didn’t see much of Michael Dyer or Onterio McCalebb, but they’ll be fine. Dyer had a nice 11 yard run at the beginning of the game and McCalebb had some decent runs. If McCalebb can get on the edge, as we all know, he can break it. Dyer should have a huge year. I think Ladarious Phillips is going to be a player at fullback. He’s 6’0″ 291 pounds and he’s an athlete. He can catch the ball out of the backfield, and he can run. He can be a weapon. I was impressed with Anthony Morgan, too. He’s got explosiveness and great speed. Think he could help next year with depth. Quan Bray (5’11”, 178) and Tre Mason (5’10”, 190) are two four star freshmen who are coming in, so there is some more help on the way. I think Phillips and Dyer can really give Auburn some power running  between the tackles. And Dyer has the speed to break it of course. McCalebb with blocking, we know can be a game breaker.

Wide receiver looks OK. Emory Blake should be good. Didn’t see a lot of action on Saturday, but he’s a good player; we know that. Trovon Reed is the guy everybody has been talking about for the last two years. Stan White described him in the spring game as having “Percy Harvin speed.” Now that would be exciting. He made a couple of receptions, but I didn’t get to see him do a lot in the open field. I know the coaching staff and fans are excited about him. Could be another of those game breakers Tigers need. We know what Lutz can do. Should have a big year. I would use him a lot this year. The guy is so dependable catching the ball and always gets in the end zone. He could be an All American this year. The coaches have been waiting for Carr to step up. He had a nice spring last year, but has trouble catching the ball sometimes. If he can work on his hands, he could be an explosive player. He has the great speed, but he has trouble securing the ball. Same on punts. He needs to work out a lot with the quarterbacks this spring and summer. Benton is another guy who needs to step up and catch the ball. He could be a playmaker. Another guy who has been talked about that needs to step up is Travante Stallworth. He and Benton were considered stellar a couple of years ago and there was an article in the paper about their immense ability. So it’s time they get it together and start making plays. Didn’t see really anybody else who stood out at tight end besides Lutz. Cameron Groce played some and he was serviceable. There are two tight ends coming in with this frosh class: Brandon Fulse (6’4″, 247, four star) and C.J. Uzomah (6’5″, 230, three star).

The line looked pretty good really. Reese Dismukes looks like he’ll be a player. Has a good mean streak in him and is perfect with snaps. Blake Burgess will battle with him for the starting spot at center, but I think it’s Dismuke’s job to lose. A.J. Greene and Brandon Mosley look like they’ll man the tackle spots. Chad Slade should be one of the guards. Eric Mack may be the other. John Sullen, Ed Christian and the highly acclaimed Christian Westerman should battle for jobs. Westerman was the commit to Texas who decommitted and came to Auburn instead. He was rated a five star by Scout and ESPN and a high four star by Rivals. Should be an impact player early. He’s at 300 pounds now and 6’4″. Could be the next Lee Ziemba. Depth could be a factor on the line.

Dline has some players. Jeffrey Whitaker (dt), Kenneth Carter (dt) Craig Sanders (de), Corey Lemonier (de) and Joel Bonomolo (de) are all very good players. And Nosa Eguae (de) is coming back and he’s an excellent player. Defensive end looks pretty good. Defensive tackle may have depth issues. Angelo Blackman, a 6’5″, 290 high three star incoming frosh, should help , and Gabe Wright, a 6’3″, 273 (he’s probably bigger by now) was a big time recruit, a high four star, and I think the coaches are excited about him. Need to also stay healthy on the defensive line.

Linebacker has some solid players, too, just not a lot. I thought Eltoro Freeman had a good scrimmage on Saturday. I know Auburn fans are waiting for him to step up and become the dominating player they thought he would be. He looked like he might be heading in that direction on Saturday. Jake Holland looks like he’s ready to take over in the middle and Darren Bates and Jonathan Evans could be the outside guys though LaDarius Owens is going to make a push for a starting job. He’s going to be a very good player. Jessell Curry, a sophomore, and Jawara White, a redshirt freshman, could be excellent linebackers as well. Five star freshman Kris Frost is coming in. He’s listed as an athlete, so he could be a linebacker or in the secondary. He’s 6’3″, 210. There are three other three star linebackers coming in, so there will be decent depth at this position.

Secondary will be led by T’Sharvin Bell. He’s a leader and a playmaker as he showed in the Alabama game last year with that big sack on Greg McElroy and then his pick six against South Carolina in SEC Champ game. Looks like an All-American to me. I was very impressed with Jonathan Mincy on Saturday. He looks like he can be a big hitter and make plays in the secondary at corner. Chris Davis will be be a player at corner.Neiko Thorpe will be back and should have a good year and Demetruce McNeal is a guy who I was impressed with at safety last year. Jonathan Rose could be a stellar player. The freshman looked like he had a nose for the football at corner. Should be a key player next year and the future is unlimited for this high four star recruit. Guys like four star signee Enrique Florence (everybody wanted him), Anthony Swain (high three star), Robinson Theaezie (four star) and Jermaine Whitehead (four star) will need to come in and help right away.

Chandler Brooks connected on three field goals in the first half, one for 47 yards with the wind at his back, but then struggled in the second half against the wind. Wind was a factor. Stan White kept saying that Cody Parkey, who was slightly injured and didn’t play, is the guy the coaches want to kick for them. He has been behind Wes Byrom for two years and White says he’ll be the guy as he was highly touted coming out of high school. Steven Clark did a good job punting overall. Had a couple that weren’t very good, but boomed a couple; one for 68 yards with the wind at his back.

McCalebb looks good returning kicks. He’s solid though you don’t want him to get hurt doing that. Reed looks like he could be a big time returner on punts and kickoffs. The coaches are really counting on this guy this year. He has good hands returning punts and could be a game breaker. He has the tools to be outstanding. Carr could be in the mix if he can catch the ball better. He has the break away speed.

The Schedule:

Pretty brutal. Utah State at home, Ms. State at home, @ Clemson and versus Florida Atlantic. Come out of there with four wins and things could get interesting. Then @ South Carolina, @ Arkansas, vs. Florida and @ LSU. The final four are Ole Miss @ home, @ Georgia, vs. Samford and the Iron Bowl, Saturday, Nov.26,  at Jordan Hare.

I think this team has more talent than people think and if Trotter–whom I think should be the starter–can be as good as I think he can be, the Tigers could surprise some people. It’s all about staying healthy. If Auburn can have some luck with injuries they can be very competitive this season. There’s not one game they can’t win depending on how Trotter plays, how effective the wrs are, and how the line performs and stays healthy. There are some new quarterbacks in this league and they’ll be making the adjustment at Clemson, South Carolina, Arkansas, Brantley has not proven anything at Florida and Jefferson is erratic at LSU. Ole Miss will have a new qb, Georgia will have a good player in Aaron Murray and Alabama will have a new quarterback. I’d say nine wins–that’s including a bowl win– would be a successful season and they can build up the depth for a run in ’12. But you never know. If Trotter plays well–and I’m not Gus Malzahn so it could be Moseley–and the other offensive players do their part, the line comes together and the defense stays healthy, there are athletes to compete with anybody in the SEC. These coaches are great developers of talent, so they could make it very interesting this year. Some incoming freshmen will have to play and play well. You can’t count this team out. There is good talent and there is great coaching. Just not a lot of depth. If the Tigers stay healthy though, they could have a very good season. The schedule is tough, but nobody Auburn is pretty even with the other teams they’ll be facing and a lot of these players know how to win. Should be a fun and interesting season.

(To me, Barrett  looks like the man.)

Enjoyed the Spring game on Saturday. Crimson team won 14-10 and ate steaks. White team got the beans. I always enjoy watching the Spring game. Gives you a gauge of where the team is and what they need to improve on. I know S likes it. I thought it would never end. I wish he’d run a continuos clock. The game kind of dragged a little bit at the end.
The strengths of this team are: 1. Linebacker. 1A. the secondary.

Both positions are very strong. Dont’a Hightower looks like he’s back to 2009 form where he was a dominant player. He is ready for a breakout performance his junior year. He and senior outside linebacker Courtney Upshaw should be All American players. Sophomore  C.J. Mosely will also be dominant and he’s a playmaker on defense. He had two interceptions last year and really just got in the rotation in the Florida game. Senior Alex Watkins is another linebacker who will be an impact player. The coaching staff is expecting big things out of Adrian Hubbard. He’s 6’6″, 237 and looks like he’s still filling out. He had a nice sack on A.J. McCarron on Saturday. Then there’s Chris Jordan who had nine tackles Saturday as did Mosely and Watkins. Nico Johnson and  Jerrell Harris are studs. Tana Patrick is another whom I didn’t see played much. And the coaches and players are really high on freshman Trey Depriest. They’ve been raving about the 6’2″ 242 pound inside linebacker. I’m telling you, this linebacking corps may be one of the greatest you’ll ever want to watch in college football. All of the guys I mentioned are future NFL players. Some of them are first rounders. They will dominate.

The secondary is right behind the lbs. Mark Barron looked really good scooping up that fumble by McCarron at the one and returning it 99 yards for a TD. Looked pretty fast and very athletic. He’ll be ready to go in the fall. DeQuan Menzie was impressive with an interception and six tackles. He’s still in a battle with Dee Milliner for the starting cornerback job on one side. He took a step ahead on Saturday, but Milliner is a very fine player, a five star by Rivals in 2010, so he can get it done, too. Milliner had 55 tackles last year, four tackles for loss and a beautiful interception which I think was against State. He’s an impressive player. Dre Kirkpatrick should be the other corner. His talent is unlimited. Dre had 43 tackles last year, four tackles for loss, three interceptions and a fumble recovery. He’s firmly entrenched. Jarrick Williams had a nice interception on Saturday. Unfortunately, he fumbled the ball on the return. He looks to have good cover skills though. Robert Lester should be an All-American this year along with Barron. His eight interceptions led the country last year. He also had 12 pass breakups, 52 tackles and a fumble return for 89 yards. He’s special. Freshman Vinnie Sunseri looked very impressive Saturday with his hitting. He’s going to lay wood on people this year. He probably has good ball skills, too, but didn’t get a chance to show that on Saturday. John Fulton and Will Lowery are two others who are excellent players and will be ball hawks. Lowery had two picks last year. Not sure what’s going to happen with Robbie Green. He’s supposedly a talented player, but can’t seem to get his act together in school. Will stay on top of that and see if S gives him another shot. Hasean Clinton-Dix is a five star recruit who is coming in this fall. He will be another talented player in the secondary. It might take him a little longer to get the defense down at cornerback, but he could be a factor. The secondary is loaded.

Honestly, didn’t watch the dline that closely, but noticed Nick Gentry making a lot of plays at tackle. Josh Chapman looks like a good 340 though he’s only listed at 310. He could be a good player inside. Really like Gentry. He’s that overachiever type who is not going to take a play off. Kerry Murphy looks like he may not make it back from injury. Will keep you posted on him. Ed Stinson looks like he’ll be a good player as will Darrington Sentimore. Stinson at dend and Sentimore at tackle. The coaching staff is very high on Damion Square at defensive end. Square had a couple of tackles on Saturday. Look for juco transfer Jesse Williams to make an impact. He was highly regarded coming out of Arizona at a community college. A high four star, almost a five star.

The line should be pretty effective and there are some potential dominating players in Sentimore and Stinson. Brandon Lewis is another at dend.

On offense, the offensive lines for both teams gave up eight sacks combined, but that may be more of a sign of how good the defense is. William Vlachos, Barrett Jones, Chance Warmack and D.J. Fluker should be fine. Alfred McCullough looks to be ahead of Aaron Douglas at this point at right tackle. Jones is now working at left tackle. Arie and Cyrus Kouandijo should be great players. Whether they can do it next year is to be determined. Will depend on their fall camps. Arie was a high four star and was redshirted last year and Cyrus is a five star incoming freshman. Everybody knows about the intensity of the recruiting of Cyrus. He was the third best player in the country according to Rivals so he was highly coveted. He could make an impact early. Line needs to stay healthy and do a better job protecting the quarterback. The quarterbacks aren’t the fleetest guys afoot, but they can avoid pressure pretty well. It all starts up front, so first year oline Coach Jeff Stoutland will have his work cut out for him this summer to work the starters hard and build depth. Could be an area of concern.

Running back looks great. Trent was awesome Saturday with a touchdown reception and some nice runs. He is ready for a potential Heisman year. Dee Hart is “explosive” according to the coaches. He had a nice 17 yard run for a TD. The five star freshman looks like he could fill Richardson’s role from two years ago. If Eddie Lacy can solve his fumbling problems, he’s an excellent running back. Jalston Fowler impressed me with his power. Corey Grant didn’t get any opportunities, but I’ve heard great things about him coming out of high school. Demetrius Goode is a good player.

Wide receiver could be a position of concern as far as having a big play guy. It’s hard to replace a Julio Jones, but there are a lot of talented guys who could do it by committee. Darius Hanks and Marquis Maze return and they’re good players. Maze could be a big play guy. The coaches are high on DeAndrew White. They think he can be a Julio-type player. He doesn’t have Julio’s size as he’s 6’0″ 180, but he’s got good speed. Brandon Gibson had a very good Spring game with six catches for 63 yards and a good Spring overall. He’s a senior and ready to step up. Michael Bowman, Kevin Norwood  and Keiwon Malone are three others who could be impact players. Kenny Bell is another who caught three passes for 49 yards on Saturday and looked like a good target. At tight end, I love Michael Williams. He’s a great blocker and a very good receiver. Chris Underwood and Brad Smelley are good players. Brian Vogler made some catches though he did fumble. The offenses fumbled four times, so they need to clean that up.

There are three talented freshmen and a junior college player coming in at wide receiver. Marvin Shinn, Danny Woodson and  Bradley Silve are all four star players. Woodson is a 4.4 guy who could help in the return game. Duron Carter, Pro Hall of Fame wide receiver Chris Carter’s son, is a 6’2″, 195 wr who played at Ohio State his freshman year then transferred to Coffeyville Junior College in Kansas and put up some good numbers. They are pretty high on him and he has the genes.

Kicking game looked competent with Jeremy Shelley handling the short kicks and Cade Foster the longer kicks and kickoffs and Cody Mandell the punts. Didn’t notice anything wrong with those guys. They seem to be pretty good.

I like Trent and Maze in the return game with Hart and maybe a frosh like Woodson in the mix. He ran back a kick in the Army High School All Star game all the way and was cookin’ down the field.

Now for the million dollar question: Who will be the quarterback? I thought Phillip Sims had a better game overall because he had a good second half. On the Crimson team’s 14-play, 92 yard drive for a touchdown, he was seven-of-eight for 71 yards and threw some nice passes. A.J. looked good at times, but didn’t throw the ball downfield as well as I expected he would. Sims is a better runner. I’d say it’s dead even, but if I had to give the edge from the Spring game, I’d give it to Sims. Like A.J.’s experience from last year though. He was 38-for-48 for 389 yards and three touchdowns in 2010, so that says something even though he wasn’t the guy at that time. There’s still a lot to see before the coaches can decide on who to go with. I’d give Sims the edge out of the Spring game, but Sims hasn’t played a down in a college game, so you can’t really give him the edge overall. I don’t think the coaches know who they’ll go with. That’s to be determined this summer; probably after the second week of fall camp or thereabouts. I can tell you one thing: there’s going to be an irate S at some point with all the questions from the media about the quarterback. He’s going to go ballistic a couple of times with the press. I can guarantee you that.

The Schedule:

First three against Kent State, @ Penn State and North Texas. Not sure what Penn State has this year, but that could be tough. Like ‘Bama to prevail though. I don’t think Penn State can score enough points against the defense. And the offense should be good enough. So 3-0 after three games. Arkansas comes to Ttown on Sept. 24. That will be a challenge. Tyler Wilson is going to be a very good quarterback in the SEC as he takes over from Ryan Mallett. If you watched the Ark-AU game last year, you saw how good Wilson can be. Will he step in immediately and be great? Maybe because Bobby Petrino is so good at developing quarterbacks. So that’s a tough one. At Florida, vs Vandy and at Ole Miss. Tough stretch there particularly at Florida though I think it might take a year for Florida to get it together under Muschamp. They say Jeff Brantley looked better in the Spring, but I don’t think he can figure out the Tide’s defense. Vandy is a win. At Ole Miss could be tough, too. Ole Miss should be better though they’ll be breaking in a new qb. They have a lot of talent. Vs Tenn, vs LSU and at Ms. State. Tn should be a win. LSU tougher and State looked really good in the Spring game. I watched them and Chris Relf looked great though not against the first team defense. They’ve got a good team and they’ll be tough. Finish with Georgia Southern and Auburn. Auburn will be jacked, but I like the Tide’s talent over a team that lost 24 seniors and three critical juniors in Cam Newton, Fairley and Darvin Adams. Should be a war down on the Plains, but like the Tide to prevail.

The Tide could challenge for a national championship. The key stumbling blocks are Arkansas, Florida, LSU, State and Auburn. It’s all a matter of how A.J. or Sims develops this summer and how the offensive line does as far as improving this summer,  building depth and then staying healthy during the season. Don’t see a ton of numbers there. Was concerned with all the sacks they gave up Saturday, but they did some good things in run blocking and protected well at times. Need to solidify their pass blocking. Some people will have to step up at wide receiver as well. There are a lot of talented players, but will there be a guy like a Julio who can make big plays? He’s tough to replace. He’s a once every 10 years type of player, but they may find several guys who can get the job done. Defensive line needs to stay pretty healthy, too. Linebacker, secondary and running back looks great.

it’s a tough schedule as always in the SEC and the road game at Penn State is no gimme. Like a 10-12  win regular season though at least if the McCarron or Sims steps up.

Nationally, Oklahoma, Boise State, Wisconsin, Oregon, Stanford, Virginia Tech, Florida State, TCU, maybe Ohio State and  Texas all should be good teams. But LSU, Georgia, South Carolina, State and Arkansas should be the major competitors to the Tide for the SEC Championship in Atlanta. Auburn, you never know. They’ve got a lot of players to replace.

(Will it be A.J. McCarron, left, or Phillip Sims starting under center this fall? Still to be determined.)

As usual, LSU has the athletes. The key question ia, as it is for all teams in the country, will the quarterback come through.
Jordan Jefferson has been erratic throughout his career. He only threw for four touchdowns last year against nine interceptions. He’s an outstanding runner which coaches like these days. But can he throw the ball downfield? His Spring game was OK. Made some good throws early. Todd  Blackledge of ESPN, who was doing the color for the game, said he liked Jefferson’s confidence after talking to him prior to the spring game. Blackledge said he thought this was a different Jefferson and that he had had a good spring. It just didn’t really translate into the game. He has the build at 6’5″, 224 and the athletic ability; he has a strong arm and great mobility. But does he have the head to get it done? That’s the question I have on him. The other guys behind him, Jarrett Lee and Zach Mettenberger, are, according to Les Miles, clearly behind him. Lee looks pretty erratic still, but Mettenberger, who was dismissed from Georgia after last spring for an assault offense and underage drinking in a bar, looks potentially very good. He spent last fall as the quarterback at Butler Community College in Kansas, and threw for 2,678 yards and 32 touchdowns. He’s 6’5″, 250, not real mobile, but he has a cannon. He looks like the most talented to me of the three, but Miles probably thinks Jefferson is a lot further along with the program and should be the starter. I would still watch the competition very closely in the summer because Mettenberger is highly talented.

Running back looks pretty good, not great. They lost Stevan Ridley and his 1,147 yards and 15 touchdowns. Ridley decided to go pro early. Sophomore Spencer Ware stood out to me. He ran for two touchdowns in the game and caught a nice long pass down the sidelines. Blackledge pointed out that LSU needed more explosive plays this year; plays of 20 or more yards. They were 77th in the country and 10th in the SEC last year in that category. Blackledge noted how hard it is to execute 15-20 play drives in the SEC because the defenses are so good so you have to have explosive plays. They need to get the ball in wide receiver Russell Shepard’s hands. He looks like he’s capable of making explosive plays. Shepard was a five star recruit out of Texas and is a burner on the edges. They need to get Shepard in the open field so he can make things happen. Reuben Randle is another wr they need to step up. Jarrett Fobbs looks like he could be a player on the edges. Alfred Blue is another running back who could be good along with youngsters who didn’t play in the game, Kenny Hilliard, a freshman, and Michael Ford. Tabari Williams is another. There are a stable full of athletes at the skilled positions.

Line looks fine. Didn’t notice much about them. Look big and strong. Very physical group as always at LSU.

Defense lost three big time players who are going pro. Patrick Peterson won the Bednarik Award for best defender in college football last year. He also won the Thorpe Award for best defensive back in the country. He had four interceptions, 42 tackles and six pass breakups along with great work on special teams. The LSU defense was in the top 12 in the country in three categories: scoring, pass and total defense. Linebacker Kelvin Sheppard had 116 tackles, 46 solo, 11 tackles for loss and four sacks. Defensive tackle Drake Nevis was dominant. He had 13 tackles for loss and six sacks to go along with 56 tackles. He was an All American. All of them have left for the NFL.

The guys the LSU coaches are counting on to step up this year  are defensive end Barkevious Mingo (6’5″237, soph.), defensive tackle Bennie Logan (6’3″, 280, soph.), linebacker Kevin Minter (6’1″, 225, soph.), cornerback Ron Brooks (6’0″, 179 Sr.), cornerback Tyrann Mathieu (5’9″, 180, soph.) and safety Eric Reid (6’2″, 207, soph.). All of these guys are excellent football players. Mingo, Logan and Minter were held out of the Spring game, but the defensive backs were very good in the game. That is the number one strength of this team: the secondary. Mathieu had a huge bowl game against Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl and he looks like he could be as dominant a player as Peterson was. Think he had a couple of interceptions in the Cotton Bowl. Going to be an All American this year. An interesting stat on the defense was that last year in third and seven situations are longer, opposing teams converted only 18% of those plays. That was tops in the SEC and 12th in the country. Looks like they have the talent to put up those numbers again.

Kicker Drew Alleman was decent. I don’t think he’s as good as Josh Jasper was, but he’ll be fine.

The key is quarterback. Can Jefferson step up and have a good senior year. That and Miles’ decision making will be key factors. Miles has had serious issues with the two minute offense in the last couple years. He seems to bungle those situations. But he’s also run some trick plays that have won games for his team. He’s a tough one to figure out. I have always wondered if Miles is good or just lucky. I think more of the latter, but he was 11-2 last year with a victory in the Cotton Bowl and he can really recruit. There are 67 players on the roster from Louisiana. It’s a state that is loaded with talent. There are 17 more from the ultra talented state of Texas. Baton Rouge is  a recruiting mecca and Miles has taken advantage of it. The players seem to like him. He just seems a little goofy to me. He’s pretty humorous with the “Wolf” during CBS telecasts, so that’s always fun to watch. I do like him overall.

The schedule is demanding. The Bengal Tigers open with Oregon on Sat., Sept 3, at 7 p.m. on ABC. That’s a major challenge. Then after a gimme against Northwestern State at Baton Rouge, they go to State and then to West Virginia. Home games against Kentucky and Florida then at UT, home against Auburn, at Tuscaloosa, home against Western Kentucky, at Ole Miss and home against Arkansas.

The defense gave up some big plays that lost games last year. The 70 yard run by Auburn’s Onterio McCalebb and two long pass plays by Arkansas were the led to the only two defeats on the season. But last season was good for LSU overall. I see a 9-3 possibly 10-2 season with a chance to make it to Atlanta. Jefferson has to step up, that’s for sure. There are athletes on offense around him and the defense should be very good.

They also have a new offensive coordinator in Steve Kragthorpe, who takes over from Gary Crowton. Crowton left for  the Maryland OC job. Kragthorpe specializes in quarterbacks, so maybe he can have Jefferson playing good ball.

LSU needs to make explosive plays this year on offense and prevent big plays on defense. The talent is there if they can get good play from Jefferson or Mettenberger, if he beats him out this summer. It’ll most likely be Jefferson, so it’ll be up to him.

(Jordan Jefferson must deliver this year if LSU wants to make it to Atlanta.)

Tomorrow: Mississippi State

Noticed some pretty nice things on offense for the Gamecocks. Marcus Lattimore and Alshon Jeffery didn’t get a lot of action. We know what they can do. Lattimore rushed for almost 1,200 yards last year as a freshman, ran for 17 touchdowns and caught two more. Jeffery caught 88 passes for 1,517 yards and nine touchdowns. Both are All-Americans.
But a guy who could be another impact player at receiver for SC is DeAngelo Smith. The sophomore caught three touchdown passes in the Spring game and looked very good. Made a couple of really fine catches for scores. He looks like a player. Ace Sanders is a speedster who can make some big plays at receiver.

SC looks pretty good at running back behind Lattimore. Kenny Miles looks like a more than capable backup as he ran for 43 yards on Saturday with some nice power and quickness runs. He led the team in rushing in 2009 before Lattimore arrived. Also, Eric Baker looks like a capable backup as well.

The offensive line looked pretty dominating. They should be a good unit though they were mostly going against the second team defense. Still had a good showing.

The big question mark is at quarterback. Stephen Garcia got suspended from the team for the fifth time and was suspended from school. The infraction is not being disclosed. Will he get a sixth chance? That would be unusual for any college program, but who knows what the severity of this violation is. If he comes back, the offense could  be pretty explosive. Garcia threw for 3,059 yards last year and 20 tds, but also had 14 ints. He can be erratic, and a head case, so the Gamecocks may be better off without him. But we’ll see. If he doesn’t, sophomore Connor Shaw will take over. Shaw looks like he’s pretty mobile, but has a little difficulty throwing it downfield. Against Auburn last year, he showed some good things, but threw two critical interceptions. He has some work to do. Behind Shaw is Andrew Clifford and he looked decent. The third quarterback is Dylan Thompson. All three look like they have potential though not as good as Garcia. Quarterback could be a big question mark particularly throwing the ball downfield if Garcia doesn’t return to the team.

Defense played pretty basic and rested most of its starters. They made some nice plays with a couple of nice ints. Stephon Gilmore is returning at cornerback. He is a junior and had 79 tackles last year, six tackles for loss, three sacks and three interceptions. He’s a dominating, Charles Woodson-like player. Antonio Allen returns also at db. He had 70 tackles last year, 10.5 tackles for loss, two and a half sacks and an int. All three other dbs return as SC runs a nickel package on defense with five dbs. D.J. Swearinger and DeVonte Holloman are quality players in the secondary. It’s numbers on defense for the Gamecocks that is the issue. They still run into depth problems at times. Dline looks like they’ve got some athletes but may be a little thin. Linebacker looks pretty good led by Rodney Paulk and Shaq Wilson. Spurrier felt pretty good about his defense during the Spring game even though the starters didn’t play much Saturday. Ellis Johnson is an excellent defensive coordinator and should field a very competitive unit. They just need to stay healthy. With the addition of the number one player in the country, Jadeveon Clowney (6’6″, 247), they could get a good pass rush. Clowney is supposedly a beast and, according to his high coach, will make an immediate impact on the college level. He is the third number one player in a row in South Carolina to sign with the Gamecocks following Gilmore (2009) and Lattimore (2010).

The Stephen Garcia subject will be the hot topic until it is resolved. The Gamecocks could sure use him, though Shaw shows potential. Garcia may have run out of chances.

Schedule is challenging as always in this conference. One of the  games that stands out to me is the second game against Georgia. This could be a key game in deciding who wins the East though there will be a lot of football left after that. Should be a classic. At Athens. Home games against Navy, Vandy, Auburn (big game) and Kentucky in a row after that before going to State, UT and Arkansas. Florida comes to Columbia in what should be another huge game if Gamecocks can get through their road schedule and Citadel and Clemson at home finish it off. The Gamecocks open with East Carolina in Charlotte.

The Gamecocks look like a solid team. Could challenge for East though those three road games in a row in the middle of the season are tough. Nine wins would be very good. Eight or seven seem more likely. If Garcia comes back, nine could be possible. Will keep up with Garcia saga.

(Marcus Lattimore will be relied on heavily this year especially if Stephen Garcia doesn’t get back on the team.)