At his weekly press conference Monday afternoon, LSU coach Les Miles said his offense “needed a pick me up” on Saturday.
It came in the shape of a 6-foot-1, 215-pound junior quarterback by the name of Danny Etling.
Etling, who came on in relief duty for junior quarterback Brandon Harris, helped lead the Tigers to three straight scoring drives, en route to a 34-13 victory over Jacksonville State.
Now Miles has a quarterback controversy on his hands, but the starter for Saturday’s game has yet to be determined.
“We’re not turning our back in any way on a competition,” Miles said. “I will not name the starter until I talk to the team.”
Miles said Etling was “executing” at practice throughout the past two weeks at a much higher rate, and the preparation he put in made him deserving of the opportunity to play against Jacksonville State.
For Harris, the opportunity for a “respite” from the duties of being a starting quarterback was a “positive,” but he expects both quarterbacks could continue to play this season, Miles said.
“We’re going to need both the guys,” Miles said. “But [let’s] make sure [Harris] gets that opportunity to compete and see how he’s coming, and let’s not turn a blind eye to a very talented quarterback on our team already.”
Fournette expected to return this weekend
Junior running back Leonard Fournette missed his first career game as a Tiger on Saturday.
The 6-foot-1, 235-pound tailback decided to sit out the matchup against the Gamecocks because of a lingering ankle injury.
Miles said he expects Fournette to practice three or four days this week and play against Mississippi State.
“We expect Leonard to be back and ready to go in this game,” Miles said.
In relief of Fournette, LSU used a “running back by committee” approach, with sophomore running back Derrius Guice spearheading the rushing attack, totaling 155 rushing yards and a touchdown.
“We’re fortunate to have real quality backs to turn to when you have a guy like Leonard Fournette out of the lineup,” Miles said. “We are looking forward, though, to seeing [Leonard] return.”
White named Co-Southeastern Conference Special Teams player of the week
When senior cornerback Tre’Davious White fielded a punt at the 40-yard line and backtracked 20 yards, Miles went through a rollercoaster of emotions.
“It was, ‘No, no, no,’ and then it went, ‘Go, go,’” Miles said, as he recalled watching White’s punt returned. “I was just madder than hell initially. I said, ‘What are you doing? What are you doing? Go, go.’ And then he knew where the corner was.”
After shaking off multiple Jacksonville State defenders, White found the endzone from 60 yards out.
It was White’s third career punt return touchdown, earning the Shreveport, Louisiana, native Co-SEC special team player of the week honors, sharing the award with Auburn placekicker Daniel Carlson.
With his 60-yard score, White moved to tie in second place — behind former LSU standout Skyler Green — for most all-time special teams touchdowns in LSU history.