The Tigers were outplayed in every facet of the game Saturday night. The 49 game non-conference winning streak has ended as LSU fell 24-21 to the Troy Trojans.
Offensive play calling
It was tough not to notice some questionable play calls on offense tonight.
On 3rd-and-6 of the second offensive series, a run to the left side was called. With no Derrius Guice and a struggling offensive line the team went for it on fourth down and failed to convert on a short slant route.
The LSU leading receiver through one quarter was freshman fullback Tory Carter who had two catches for 12 yards. In fact, all of the Tiger completions in the first quarter went to fullbacks for a grand total of 10 yards.
Three turnovers and an inefficiency to convert third downs led to the Tiger demise on offense. LSU went 0-for-8 on third down.
Special Teams
Where to begin; how about a missed field goal at the two minute mark of the first half to keep LSU at zero in the scoring column.
In a bizarre turn of events, Troy was allowed to kick a field goal with two seconds remaining in the half to take a 10-0 lead. That field goal would prove to be costly as LSU would come back late in the fourth but come up a field goal shy of a tie.
LSU also failed to recover an onside kick midway through the fourth quarter, but the attempt was poorly executed. A second onside kick attempt was recovered by Troy at the two minute mark.
Myles Brennan time in the Bayou
The freshman received his chance down 17-0 in the third quarter and produced the first scoring play for the Tigers.
Brennan’s opening drive went three and out with Brennan leaving the pocket early on second and third down.
Brennan looked comfortable at times behind center, completing his second pass for 48 yards to DJ Chark.
A touchdown to tight end Foster Moreau late in the third was followed by an interception on the next drive.
On the night, Brennan went 4-of-7 for 68 yards and a score with one interception.
Defensive Shortcomings
It didn’t help that the defense was on the field for nearly 35 minutes of the game but missed assignments and lack of pressure allowed Troy to rack up 363 yards of total offense.
Arden Key once again was absent for much of the game. Questions of his condition after offseason shoulder surgery have officially come into play.
In three games, the junior who Todd McShay has as the third rated player in next years draft, has nine tackles and half a sack.
The LSU defense allowed Troy to go 10-of-18 on third down conversions with no pressure being applied to Brandon Silvers. Running back Jordan Chunn led the way for the Trojans gaining 191 yards on 30 carries with a touchdown.
