For the hero of last year’s 17-10 win over Georgia inTiger Stadium, the green light is on if he’s ready to go, LSUcoach Nick Saban said of junior wide receiver Skyler Green at hisWednesday press conference.
Suffering a high ankle sprain in the Tigers’season-opening 22-21 overtime victory against Oregon State, Greenhas seen limited time in the last three games.
Saban said Green practiced well this week and is overcoming theinjury both physically and mentally.
“He’s done things with a lot more consistency anddoesn’t seem like he’s limping,” Saban said.”He didn’t even wear his brace today.”
The coaching staff is monitoring Green’s injury and willmake a decision on Green’s game status later this week, Sabansaid.
“I know he wants to play,” Saban said. “Wejust want him to be comfortable and confident that he can play theway he’s capable of playing. If he’s Skyler Green,we’ll play him. If he’s not, we won’t.”
The team as a whole also practiced well this week, Sabansaid.
“We’ve had a little more spirit — a littlemore spunk,” Saban said. “[Tuesday] the defense kind ofhad some spunk. [Wednesday] the offense had a little more spunk.[There is] a lot of competition out there and I think that’sgood. I think that’s the way you get better.”
Saban said he hopes the squad’s practice carries over intoSaturday’s nationally-televised game at Georgia on CBS at2:30 p.m.
LSU lost its only road this season,10-9, at Auburn two weeksago.
“I see a lot of improvement in our team,” Sabansaid. “I hope that we can continue to do it. As I’vesaid earlier we have to prove that we can go on the road and havethe kind of mental and physical kind of focus that you need to havefor 60 minutes in a game … We’ll see where we’re atin that regard.”
The Tigers took two games from UGA last season with LSU winningboth contests, including a 34-13 rout of the Bulldogs in theSoutheastern Conference Championship game in Atlanta.
Both wins gave the Tigers confidence last season, Sabansaid.
The real task is how a team handles success, Saban said. Hecited last year’s loss to Florida after the first win overUGA as a failure to keep the ball rolling.
“Do you persevere and continue to do it on a daily basis,a weekly basis and build on it?” Saban said.”That’s really the true test and it takes a lot ofability to not be satisfied with one good thing happening. We wantto continue to have that meaningful value inside of you that makesyou want to continue to persevere.”
Saban said the definition of confidence in football players istwo-fold.
“I think we’ve got guys that are confident in theirability,” Saban said. “I think we’ve got guysthat are not always confident in understanding what they’resupposed to do and what’s expected of them — not onlyin execution but also in how they go about that execution when itcomes to effort and toughness … It’s a differentpsychological mindset for some of these guys to try to grow andunderstand how we want things done.”