MARCEL BROOKS TRANSFER SAGA: WHY HE'S SO GOOD & WHY LSU NEEDS HIM

By

LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN

@LonnPhillips

While the potential transfer of superstar Marcel Brooks weighs heavily on all Tigers fans, many of us wondering "why", "who", "what", and the all-important "where", I feel we're losing sight of a frustrating reality:

A real Tiger fan knows and understands the flux of personnel who come and go at LSU: hell, everyone tried to tell me Lanard Fournette would be the 2019 starting running back, just for a quick example, not to mention the fact that one of LSU's 2019 1st Round draft picks nearly transferred last summer.....

Baton Rouge history is full of prospective greats who weren't compatible with the team, guys who were led astray by off-field demons or became an undisciplined, untrustworthy teammate; then there's the simple explanation: the young man simply needed to transfer elsewhere so he could maximize his chances for a shot at the NFL (such as safety Eric Monroe)...

However, none of these scenarios apply to the curious case of Marcel Brooks, which makes his situation so bizarre.

"What excites me most about Marcel is you can do so many things with him, just like Jacoby Stevens, Marcel is explosive," Defensive coordinator Bo Pelini implored excitedly only weeks ago...

We do know Bo Pelini lit into Brooks during Spring practices, Marcel being the only player Pelini yelled at, as well as the only time Bo raised his voice during the entire three practices, angry at #9 for apparently "messing around" instead of being intense.

Now there's talk about "personal stuff", "anger with the school's initial cowardice post-Drew Dollar / Gavin whatever his name is, Instagram binges and skipping workouts on his birthday, tons of speculation, investigation and coverage...many opinions or guesses have been made, educated or illiterate...but the truth is:

Thanks to Coach Ed Orgeron's fool-proof locker room silence to the media or any other outsiders, accurate information has been hard to come by, even from the Shea Dixons of the LSUniverse.

Still, his final decision hasn't been made yet...until he's signed with another team, Marcel is a Tiger...and no matter where he goes, he'll always be one.

Marcel Brooks would be a devastating loss of rarefied speed, versatile virtuosity, as well as high intelligence...but most of all, Brooks is a State of Mind...Marcel is a theater of doom upon any opponent, eating their souls like a Hannibal Lecter DB who can play safety, linebacker or defensive end with the appropriate degree of simultaneous reckless abandon.

If he departs back home to Dave Aranda's Baylor, TCU or any other school he chooses in and around Texas, Brooks' loss will be a savage kick in the face to LSU fans hoping for a renegade return to an immediate titanic defense; Brooks' loss doesn't mean Pelini can't lead the Tigers to a top 5 defensive season, he still can... but Brooks sealed opponents' fate, even in preparation...

You can't.

He will eradicate, dominate and physically ostracize every offensive player in his path, leaving them as forever changed men now haunted in the flame of his wake...

Under Bo Pelini, Marcel would develop even further, utilizing all of his instinctive abilities and positional awareness so he could emotionally devastate offenses forevermore...but that decision rests in The Terminator's skillful, capable, blessed hands.

Of course, this transfer episode concludes with Marcel already hoisting one title, already playing on the greatest collegiate sports team of all time, remembered in images of "The Other #9" lighting up Tua, Trask, Ehlinger, Lawrence, Mond, Hurts (among others) as Brooks and Derek Stingley led a historic defensive freshman class consisting of big names like Cordale Flott, Jay Ward, Mo Hampton, Siaki Ika to name some headliners...

Brooks will be forever remembered regardless of his decision, however any possible life-altering path astray from LSU would be, in our opinion, detrimental for Marcel's development, that's how strong LSU's defensive staff remains.

Led by warriors like Corey Raymond, Bo Pelini, Bill Busch, all head coaching material in their own rights, Super Bowl-winning Defensive line coach Bill Johnson ("the man who developed the Rams Aaron Donald" on their way to a Super Bowl vs Brady's Patriots, Coach Orgeron's 4 National Championship Game victories and 6 appearances as D-line coach at Miami and USC, Marcel won't be finding a staff anywhere else in this nation who can match LSU's 6 National title victories, especially in the Big 12 (Orgeron's USC team were responsible for a 7th trip in 2006)....which is why this move might not have anything to do with LSU itself...

Still...the entire sequence of events has become a real morale hit to the fanbase: Marcel was a cult phenomenon across the country, but in and around Baton Rouge, #9 was a king...

Marcel Brooks and LSU are (or were) a match made in heaven...

Let's hope he stays, but if he does indeed leave, Bo Pelini's defense will have some massive questions at linebacker and suddenly huge expectations will be heaped upon Micha Baskerville, Ray Thornton, ex-WR Devonta Lee and freshman Josh White...although we expect big things from those players anyway, none of those options possess the headbanging athleticism or thunderous burst of Marcel...the scenario may force Jacoby Stevens from strong safety into an outside linebacker, an option which always seemed worth exploring.

Despite the depth, 5 Star LB Raesjon Davis won't be here until 2021, Jabril Cox and Ray Thornton will be gone by then, too....

We need Marcel Brooks...still, our football junkie desires matter not, the real question is:

"Does Marcel Brooks need LSU?"

by

LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN

COPYRIGHT 2020 UNINTERRUPTED WRITINGS INC LLC

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