Arkansas tight end Jason Peters packs a punch.
Not because he’s the single biggest threat for the Razorbacks figuratively, but because he might be literally.
Peters is a 6-foot-5, 320-pound tight end. He is third on Arkansas with 19 catches on the season for 201 yards and four touchdowns.
Linebacker Lionel Turner said it will be tough to take a guy Peters’ size down.
“He’s a pretty big fellow,” Turner said. “[He’s] kind of physical with the run blocking. It’s going to be a task for us.
“[I never] played against someone that big that played his position. He’s just like an extra offensive tackle that can run down the field and catch passes.”
Peters is a converted defensive end and tackle. The irony of this is LSU defensive end Marcus Spears is a converted tight end.
“Oh yeah, Number 80,” Spears said. “Last year he was about 300 [pounds].
“He’s very mobile, and he’s probably the toughest blocking tight end I’ve faced this season. It’s just like going up against an offensive lineman to me.”
From Someone Who Knows…
In last year’s contest between the Tigers and the Hogs, quarterback Matt Jones hit a 50-yard pass to wideout Richard Smith due to blown coverage. The next play, Jones connected on a game-winning touchdown to DeCori Birmingham.
Most of the blame on the blown coverage went to LSU cornerback Corey Webster. Turner can sympathize with Webster.
When Turner was a junior at Walker High School, his team took on Baker High School. He said it was a Hail Mary that did WHS in.
“We lost in the playoffs on a last-second play,” he said. “I was one of the people back there trying to knock it down. Somehow they ended up catching the ball.”
Turner said Webster has responded the right way by working hard and improving throughout this year.
“We don’t really think about what happened last year,” Turner said. “You have to forget about it even though it’s probably still in the back of his mind. He just came out this year … and played with techniques and everything that coach teaches him in practice.”
Said cornerback Travis Daniels of the 50-yard play and subsequent collapse during the end of the game: “It was like a bad dream.”
Daniels said in the secondary a player must have a short-term memory. Webster has seemingly demonstrated this, recording four interceptions and 21 pass breakups. The 21 pass breakups ties Webster for the conference lead with Daniels.
He Does it Again
LSU defensive tackle Chad Lavalais earned the Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the Week honors for the second time this season after another strong performance Saturday against Ole Miss.
It’s the second time Lavalais has earned the award. Lavalais said the award means something more than a preseason honor because it is something earned and worked for.
“You have to earn your stripes,” Lavalais said. “All that other stuff you do before the season they’re just going off what happened last year.”
Lavalais deserves some serious consideration for SEC Defensive Player of the Year. The votes will probably come down to Lavalais and Florida defensive back Keiwan Ratliff, who has nine interceptions.
Coming Up Huge
Most of the nation said if the Ole Miss-LSU game came down to special teams and particularly field goal kicking, the Rebels would have the edge.
After all, coming into the game Ole Miss kicker Jonathan Nichols had only missed one kick on the year while LSU true freshman kicker Chris Jackson was only 2-of-3 on the year.
But it was Jackson who came up clutch, nailing a 45-yard field goal in the first quarter. The field goal proved huge considering the three-point difference in the final score.
“That field goal that Chris made was very important,” Daniels said. “It was probably the reason we were able to win the game.”
Coach Nick Saban said Jackson has improved throughout the year.
“Chris has gained a lot of confidence this year, especially kicking with no tee,” Saban said. “He’s hit the ball really well the last two or three weeks on field goals. He’s got a lot of range. We worked on his technique a little bit and he’s gotten a lot more consistent.”
Meanwhile, Nichols was 0-for-2 in the field goal department. He missed a critical 36-yard kick with just four minutes left.
Saban Quotable
On bringing your best effort for every game:
“Every guy has the choice to bring his best effort. There was a sermon in church just two weeks ago: God controls everything, but you control one thing – that’s whether you bring your best effort or not. I really think that even when we haven’t executed well, the players have really tried to give their best effort. We haven’t always been successful. It hasn’t always been pretty. But from a competitive standpoint and an intangible standpoint, I think this is the best team that we’ve had since we’ve been here and one of the best teams I’ve ever been associated with.”