One week ago today, plenty of people were discussing LSU junior quarterback Zach Mettenberger. Can he be the first LSU quarterback in recent years to pose a serious and consistent threat with his vertical passing attack? Is he a dark-horse Heisman candidate? Is he the “Mett-siah”? Does he possess supernatural healing powers? One week ago today, most of those questions didn’t seem too ridiculous. But Mettenberger started his first game for LSU last Saturday and his performance was immediately condemned by some of those same people who set absurd standards for No. 8 in the first place. Isn’t it terrible when an athlete doesn’t live up to the inflated expectations the media and fan base have created for him? But we can’t have it both ways. We built him up and now we tear him down after one week and a performance with a couple of dark spots to go along with its bright moments. Welcome to the spotlight, Zach. With a 19-of-26 performance that totaled 192 passing yards, one touchdown and one interception, Mettenberger got the job done handily against North Texas. He was efficient, and LSU won 41-14. That’s what matters. The LSU offense even racked up 508 yards, its most since a 2007 matchup against Louisiana Tech. That’s not to say there aren’t improvements to be made. “No one can criticize me as hard as I criticize myself,” Mettenberger said. “Y’all have ripped me in the newspapers and stuff but that’s part of it. I feel I could have played better. I wanted to be 26 for 26 with 300 yards but that’s not how it goes. But we got the win, and if I keep improving from here, we’ll be good.” Quarterbacks playing their first starts make mistakes. And if they’re going to screw up, it’s much better to do it against North Texas at home than at Jordan-Hare Stadium against Auburn in a few weeks. Mettenberger did what he needed to do. He doesn’t need to light up defenses for 400 yards. He doesn’t need to toss the ball deep every series. He needs to manage the game. He needs to let LSU’s squadron of running backs continue to break down defenses like they did in the first game of the season. While it’s easy to point a finger at Mettenberger, he’s not totally to blame for the game plan. As fun as it is to watch a gunslinger, that’s not something the Tigers are going to have this season and it’s not something they need. LSU offensive coordinator Greg Studrawa will continue to run the ball and exploit defenses with passes underneath – because it works. It worked so well in 2003 that LSU won the BCS National Championship with Matt Mauck – a quarterback known more for his leadership skills than his ability to fire the ball downfield. Mauck relied on running backs Justin Vincent and Joseph Addai to rack up yards, and it got the job done. There’s no shame in holding down the offense with consistent short-range passing while the Tigers’ bevy of running backs do the damage. Only one week into the season, we can all take a step back. We can relax and be happy with what Mettenberger is doing because for now, it’s enough.
____ Contact Albert Burford at [email protected]