Saturday was another wild and wacky moment in college football.
Upsets were rampant, top teams were struggling and Matt Mauck completed 90 percent of his passes.
As many top-ranked teams squeaked by opponents or got bit by the upset bug, LSU marched on a different path and humiliated Arizona, 59-13, on the Wildcats’ own turf.
The Tigers started the game with a methodical 15-play, 80-yard drive that absorbed 6 minutes and 25 seconds of clock and concluded with a Joseph Addai touchdown run. From there, the Tigers never looked back.
And as impressive as the defense was – giving up only 182 yards of total offense – the play of Mauck stood out above all.
Since coming to LSU, Mauck has made a habit of completing less than 50 percent of his passes. Even when he earned the MVP of the 2001 SEC Championship Game, Mauck completed only 33 percent of his throws.
He has a reputation of a leader who runs the offense well and can get himself out of trouble with his legs. LSU coach Nick Saban has said on a few occasions that Mauck’s “true grit” makes him an effective quarterback.
But since coming back from last year’s season-ending foot injury, Mauck looks like a different quarterback. Sure, there was that first quarter of the ULM game, but the 40-minute delay and tropical storm may have had something to do with that.
He finished the Tigers’ opener against ULM 13-of-28 for 153 yards and three touchdowns. Four of his passes landed right in the bread basket of his intended receivers but were dropped. Saturday in Tucson, he went 9-of-10 for 137 yards and a touchdown through the air.
So far this season, Mauck looks comfortable running a four-and five-wideout set. He also looks comfortable running the option and play action passes. And more importantly, he looks comfortable winning.
Mauck put more emphasis and focus on becoming a pocket passer during the offseason, and he stepped back into the starting quarterback position
looking like a different person.
He still has the running ability, as he showed on several occasions Saturday – especially his touchdown run on the
option play – but his ability to spread the ball around to the array of playmakers on the LSU squad is impressive.
In Saturday’s contest, Mauck played as well as Tiger fans have ever seen him play. He ran the offense with ease, with poise and hit every target
possible.
Despite his history of completing less than 50 percent of his passes, Mauck holds a 7-1 record as the starting quarterback for LSU. That may be the most important statistic of all.
If Mauck can continue to play within himself and get the ball into the hands of the Tigers’ many playmakers and the defense continues its domination as it did Saturday night, LSU may have a dream season on its hands.