The Most Dominant Player on LSU

The touchdown celebration heard 'round the world.
Photo via KLSU

7.


That number has been the most mind-blowing number this year for LSU football. It is the number of LSU do everything cornerback Tyrann Mathieu. 


"The Honey Badger" received Heisman attention after a dominant start to the season. But after a below average performance versus Tennessee and being suspended "withheld from play" against Auburn, Mathieu has lost that luster.


There is no denial Mathieu has been an explosive playmaker for LSU. But the number on the back of Mathieu's jersey isn't the craziest number 7 that applies to LSU Football in 2011. 


That number in the opening graph is referring to another player on LSU's team that Mathieu is heavily involved with for the Bayou Bengals. The "7" represents the number of punt return yards LSU has allowed this season through eight games.


The most dominant player on LSU's team this season is Australian punter Brad Wing.

Read more »

LSU Players Crush Auburn Honey Bader-less

"Freak" crushes Auburn QB Frazier for a sack.
Photo via Nola.com 

Death Valley -- Death Valley almost lived up to it's literal name Saturday. With the way LSU hit Auburn players, it's a surprise nobody actually was sent to the morgue.


I'm not even kidding either.


LSU smashed the living day lights out of the Tigers from the Plains. They hit them really really really hard.


"When the other team is huffing and puffing, we want to hit you that much harder," said cornerback Ron Brooks after the game.


The LSU defense and special teams unit, despite being Honey Bader-less, had another impressive outing against a SEC offense. But LSU did it with more emphasis on Saturday than they have all season. LSU was wearing their Pro Combat Uniforms. It would have been easy to confuse the Bayou Bengals for a NFL team.


But forget about the numbers, the purple and gold Tigers crushed their mascot counterparts with vicious hits all game long. Defensive end Barkevious Mingo tallied two sacks, tying him for the team lead of four sacks for the season. Both times he had clear paths to the quarterbacks because of his speed.


"Our speed made up for some mistakes we made today," said Mingo. "Our coaches feel comfortable with our ability to make plays."


But highlight hit of the day came from an offensive player. LSU true freshman receiver Jarvis Landry hasn't had much playing time at his position this season. But he showed his athleticism on kickoff team against Onterrio McCalebb, who scored the game winning touchdown versus LSU last year.


Sit back and enjoy folks!

KLSU Sports Interview With LSU Punter Brad Wing

I caught up with LSU punter Brad Wing earlier today at the LSU practice facility to talk about his wild weekend versus the Florida Gators. 


CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW


Listen to "Out of Bounds" every Sunday night at 6 pm and "the LSU Pregame Tailgate Show" at 11:30 am love from the LSU Student Union. Follow the KLSU Sports Staff on Twitter @KLSUSports.

True Freshman Defensive Backs Shine in Cotton Bowl

Mathieu makes plays. Period.
Photo by Nola.com

If somebody would have told me the LSU defensive backs would have had a big game versus Texas A&M, that wouldn't have surprised me. The Tigers have Patrick Peterson, the best college defensive back since Charles Woodson.

The funny thing is Peterson didn't have a great game. Aggies wide receiver Jeff Fuller, who Peterson told me after the game will have a great future in the NFL, caught seven passes for 84 yards. Fuller must have forgot he was playing against the Thorpe and Bednarik Award winner.

But Peterson had others pick him up. The three that shined the brightest were all true freshman.

It all starts with Tyrann Mathieu, who won defensive MVP of the Cotton Bowl. He was all over the field making plays for LSU. Mathieu finished with seven tackles, two forced fumbles and once interception.

Read more »

ESPNU Campus Connection -- LSU Swag (Video)

This was my feature story on ESPNU's "SportsCenter U" called "LSU Swag." The piece aired a few weeks back for ESPNU Campus Connection. Click here for the original link.

An extended version of "LSU Swag" will air tonight at 8 pm on Pelican Sports TV's "Tigers Roar." Channels, as well as a live stream of the show, can be found on PelicanSportsTV.com.

In my years of broadcasting, never having I seen players have so much fun while doing anything with the media. There was so much more cut out just because of time (which means you should watch "Tigers Roar" tonight). Hopefully more opportunities like these arise continue later on down the road.

ESPNU Campus Connection -- LSU Swag

My piece on "LSU Swag" for ESPNU Campus Connection that aired last night will be replayed at 9:40/8:40 CT this morning.

Tune in as Russell Shepard, Brandon Taylor, Ron Brooks and Patrick Peterson tell me how much the word "swag" means to them.  

Three Things to Look For -- LSU versus Vanderbilt Prediction

Jefferson went a pedestrian 20-29 for 138 yards vs Vandy in '08
Photo by: Nola.com

LSU has started the season off with a thrilling-that-shouldn't-have-been-thrilling 30-24 victory over North Carolina. They are now 1-0, heading into their first game versus SEC bottom-feeders Vanderbilt.

Though LSU should win this game with ease, the Tigers always finds to make things interesting at the end. Here are three things to look for on Saturday....

1) Can LSU put together four quarters of high-level football?

An even better question would be, "Can Jordan Jefferson be a consistent quarterback from start to finish?"

Read more »