The No. 5 LSU football team may find itself in a shootout as Western Kentucky University comes to Baton Rouge to face the Tigers at 6 p.m. on Saturday at Tiger Stadium.
LSU sophomore running back Leonard Fournette carried the Tigers’ offense so far this season, but in the past two games, the passing game bounced back to complement the Heisman Trophy favorite to create a more balanced offensive attack.
The Tigers (6-0, 4-0 Southeastern Conference) will look to continue their improvement in the passing game against the Hilltoppers, which have allowed nearly 440 yards of offense, including 265.4 passing yards and two touchdowns per game.
“We don’t ever want to get into a shootout with a team, but it is always a mindset to come out and score a lot of points,” junior wide receiver Travin Dural said. “We always want to put up as many points on the board as we can.”
Through the first four games sophomore quarterback Brandon Harris threw for 382 yards and two touchdowns and completed 54 percent of his passes. His struggles were highlighted against Eastern Michigan University, a game where Harris completed 28.6 percent of his passes for 80 yards. As a result of Harris not completing a pass in the second half, the Eagles were able to keep the game within reach.
Since the forgettable game against Eastern Michigan, the Tigers’ passing attack responded. Harris set season highs for completions, attempts and passing yards the next game against the University of South Carolina as he completed 18-of-28 passes for 228 yards and two touchdowns through the air, matching his total from the first four games.
The sophomore quarterback followed with another solid performance against the University of Florida, completing 13-of-19 attempts for 202 yards and two more passing touchdowns to the season tally.
The improved passing game could not come at a better time as the Tigers will need a balanced attack heading into the last five games of the schedule, including this weekend’s game against Western Kentucky.
The Hilltoppers’ offense is one of the most potent in the country, and LSU coach Les Miles said the team will not overlook the Hilltoppers as it did Eastern Michigan, and that’s because the talent WKU brings to the game is evident.
“[Western Kentucky] is a complete team,” Miles said. “This team will stop you on defense, will move the football and score on offense and will play very dangerous special teams.”
WKU’s offense averages 407.1 yards through the air thanks to graduate student quarterback Brandon Doughty, who has been dominant through the air. Doughty has thrown for more than 2,700 yards and 24 touchdowns this season while completing 74.1 percent of his passes, the best in the Football Bowl Subdivision.
Miles has given Doughty high praise, saying he is “every bit an SEC quarterback” but as potent as WKU’s offense, the Hilltoppers’ defense has its own struggles.
Their defense has allowed overmatched teams to gain yards and score points, including 38 allowed against Louisiana Tech University, 28 against Middle Tennessee State University and 28 against winless North Texas University.
The matchup gives Harris an opportunity to take advantage of a struggling defense and secure his third consecutive 200-plus yard passing game.
“We haven’t done anything differently then we have the first four weeks,” Dupre said. “[Florida and South Carolina] showed great run defenses early and we had to be more balanced when it was time. The receivers and Brandon [Harris] had to step up and make plays.”