I had a feeling about a month ago that this could be a unique season for the LSU football team.
It was strange. I stood in the old weight room beneath Tiger Stadium, observing the players being interviewed by the media, and it hit me.
This is the most offensive speed I’ve ever seen on a team, the defensive personnel is big, physical and adapts real well to Saban’s complex defense and the Tigers play all the big boys at home this year.
After the Tigers’ 17-10 win against Georgia on Saturday, I sat in the raucous student section thinking about the personality of this team. I’ve never seen an LSU team with this much character.
Tiger fans are used to a team scoring a 93-yard touchdown with four minutes to go, but they are not used to the Tigers coming right back and winning the game with the dynamics they displayed Saturday afternoon. Not only do they have great speed and personnel, they have character.
The ironic thing is, the students followed their example. The student section amazed me Saturday. In the first half, I was overwhelmed with the knowledge of the game my fellow 15,000 classmates possessed. (I state with a sarcastic tone).
It seemed as though each and every one of them had the answers to get the offense going and could have stepped onto the field and replaced Nick Saban and Jimbo Fisher in an instant.
But throughout the game, the sentiments began to change. No more, “Why did we do that? Why did they call that?”
And after the game, when Saban jogged over to the student section corner thanking the fans for their part in the big win, chants of “Saban, Saban!” rang out for longer than two minutes.
Shortly after Saban walked into the locker room to celebrate the victory, talks of the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans and a national title filled the hoarse, elated students’ conversations.
Was this really Tiger Stadium?
I mean Death Valley is known for its noise and an occasional upset, but this was different. No chants of “Overrated!” No rushing the field. No tearing down goal posts.
It was as if they expected the Tigers to beat the No. 7 team in the country. The team made a statement, and so did the fans.
How good is this team? That remains to be seen. But the resiliency and character of this team is impressive.
Matt Mauck fumbled the ball in the red zone, allowing Georgia to score the tying touchdown.
But as soon as the Tigers got the ball back, Fisher went right back to his signal caller with a sprint option, showing he had confidence in his leader.
And when the game was on the line on that third down, Mauck followed his offensive coordinators’ lead.
Although the play wasn’t designed the way it turned out, Mauck showed the same confidence in Skyler Green that Fisher showed in him.
Despite Green’s three dropped passes on crucial plays in the first quarter, he came back with the biggest catch of his young career in the waning moments of the game, something every Tiger fan will remember for a long time.
Mauck lofted that beautiful pass in the air just as he was hit, and Green’s speed allowed him to get underneath it in the endzone.
The Tigers are now 4-0 and ranked No. 7 in the country. But this was just one win, right? It’s only one win in the SEC, right? There are eight more games to go, right?
They have the speed, they have the personnel and they have the character.
The question is, do they have the endurance to keep it up?