When the LSU football team takes the field tomorrow against New Mexico State, the Tigers will have a chance to figure out what went wrong defensively last week.
The Aggies (2-2, 1-0 Sun Belt) run a spread offense, similar to Mississippi State.
The Bulldogs gashed the Tigers (3-1, 0-1 Southeastern Conference) running the ball out of multiple receiver sets. With three or more receivers on the field at one time, the Bulldogs totaled over 300 yards rushing, excluding sacks and an errant snap, which resulted in negative 36 yards.
LSU senior middle linebacker D.J. Welter said the spacing the multiple receivers forced the Tigers outside of the tackles leading to problems stopping their rushing attack.
“When they pulled us out of the box, we definitely left a big void in the middle of the field,” Welter said.
Welter said the job of the linebacker, who is forced out of the box, is to communicate his assignment with the secondary and the defensive line. Once the ball is snapped, he should rotate back between the tackles to help stop the run while the secondary picks up the receiver.
Against the Aggies, the Tigers have a chance to improve that communication before heading into the meat of their SEC schedule. New Mexico State ranks No. 11 in the NCAA in total plays, averaging more than 78 plays per game.
Welter said the coaches have LSU prepared for New Mexico State’s version of the spread offense, but the Tigers’ pride has them the most excited to get back on the field.
“We take that hard anytime any offense comes in here and puts that many yards on us,” Welter said. “[Not allowing many rushing yards is] something that we pride ourselves on every week. We’re going to go out this week and improve on that.”
Mississippi State quarterback Dak Prescott used his legs to buy time to open up big plays in the passing game. New Mexico State’s quarterback Tyler Rogers isn’t the same runner as Prescott with only 15 carries in the season, but he can still make plays with his feet.
LSU sophomore cornerback Tre’Davious White said the Tigers were running zone coverage when Prescott rolled out of the pocket, which allowed for open receivers. White said the secondary has to focus on the nearest receiver, but in zone it’s not so simple.
“When you’re in man-to-man and there’s a scramble drill, it’s quite easy because you can just lock-on your man and just run with him,” White said. “When we’re in a zone and you’re forced to do a scramble drill, it’s quite tough because you have to grab whoever is in your zone. If two people are in your zone at the same time, then it’s hard to cover two guys at the same time.”
The Tigers have numerous scrambling quarterbacks left on the schedule, like Auburn’s Nick Marshall.
White said LSU will need to adapt to the mobile quarterbacks starting this weekend to be successful the rest of the way.
“We’re going to see a guy like [Prescott] again,” White said. “Probably not as big, but he’ll have the same kind of skill set. It’s a learning curve for us and we need to look forward.”