Three up
Adjust, adjust, adjust: Aggies redshirt freshman quarterback Johnny Manziel terrorized the Tigers defense for the first quarter and about half of the second quarter. During that time, the Aggies rolled up a 12-0 lead, and the Tigers defense looked like it was going to be sucking wind toward the end of the game. That was until LSU defensive coordinator John Chavis switched the Tigers’ defense to one that slowly suffocated the Aggies’ attack. The Tigers went on to score 24 unanswered points, their defense got off the field and LSU won the ball game.
Turn me over: If you throw the ball 56 times in a game, you might end up with a few interceptions. That’s what Manziel found out against LSU. The LSU defense looked like its old self at times, snagging three picks. It was the Tigers’ second straight weekend with multiple interceptions after a two-interception game from the defense against South Carolina. But the Gamecocks and the Aggies both have freshman quarterbacks, and the LSU defense will have to prove its worth against a veteran in A.J. McCarron when Alabama comes to town in two weeks.
Bombs away: Did you see how many deep shots the LSU offense attempted? Eight games into the season we finally saw some life out of junior quarterback Zach Mettenberger’s right arm. He may have overshot his wideouts on almost every one of his deep balls, but the fact that this is now a part of the LSU offensive arsenal is an undeniable positive with consensus No. 1 Alabama rolling into Baton Rouge. The Tigers will need to fine tune this part of their game, and will need to make sure the statue that is Mettenberger gets the ball out of his hands in a decent amount of time, but the more Alabama has to prepare for, the better.
Three down
A big Mettdown: Mettenberger seems to be moving in the wrong direction as the season wears on. Since throwing a season-high 238 yards against Towson, Mettenberger has thrown for fewer and fewer yards each week, culminating in this weekend’s 97-yard performance, his lowest total of the season. Mettenberger’s lack of yardage against the Aggies was complemented by a dismal completion percentage of 37.9, also his lowest of the season. At least he threw a touchdown and managed to avoid throwing an interception this week.
Third and bummer: LSU converted two of its 16 third down situations. The Tigers put themselves in a number of those situations with offensive miscues, accumulating 13 penalties that cost them 102 yards. LSU managed to overcome its dismal third down performances this week in part by converting two fourth downs, but don’t expect elite SEC teams to let the Tigers get away with wins if they continually fail to convert third downs at such an alarming rate.
94: That’s the number of plays the Aggies offense ran against the LSU defense. While the Tigers’ adjustments got them off the field toward the end of the game, the offense’s inability to convert a third down kept putting them right back on the field.
