TELL THE TRUTH MONDAY: THE REALITY OF 2020 LSU

by Lonn Phillips Sullivan
 @LonnPhillips
 
 
  2019 LSU was a savage, vulgar display of power from first moment to last, beginning with the rise of a freshman when Terrace Marshall caught 3 TDs in 2 quarters against Georgia Southern, all three WRs posting 100+ yards vs Texas as Clyde was unleashed / 3rd and 17...McConaughey's embarrassment appearing straight outta Burning Man and a cracker jack box, 42 points from 48 plays vs Florida, the 60+ point beatdowns of Vanderbilt, NWState and Oklahoma, the war vs Auburn, Clyde and Joe throttling Alabama (33-13 at half in Tuscaloosa) supplying an ultimate decade-long high for any LSU fan with a second half "stemming" of the Tide; Re-arranging the faces of four #1 ranked defenses to the tune of 148 total points...and finally, dropping 42 in a come-from-behind victory over defending champions Clemson....
  Standing on the shoulders of giants, Orgeron's 2019 unit has restored a winning responsibility around Baton Rouge, yet the record-breaking way LSU stormed to the front of the SEC will be used against our current group: the high price of success.
  2019 is now the bar for any future Tigers team in the eyes of the college football world...and I'm not talking about just winning titles, it's how you win ...
  No matter how LSU wins or loses in 2020, they'll be burdened by immediate comparisons to 2019 ad nauseum:
  Yes, it will make you nauseous hearing "Joe Brady" every five seconds a pass is thrown, in fact this nausea may be induced from the drinking game you invented to commemorate every time Kirk Herbstreit mentions the former coordinator.
  Yes, we'll be annoyed as all hell listening to ESPN's Todd Blackledge compare Joe Burrow and Myles Brennan over and over with no end in sight....yes, you may as well turn up Aerosmith's seminal 1976 album Rocks full blast and mute the TV on Saturday....just let the rock and roll fury of 2020 LSU take you over.

  This is a new team, but no matter what the faceless doubters say about Orgeron's squad, they're missing the crucial point:
  Sure, without Joe Burrow, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Justin Jefferson, Lloyd Cushenberry, Patrick Queen, Grant Delpit, 2020 LSU was always going to be a "different team"....thanks to the current opt outs of Ja'Marr Chase, Kary Vincent and Tyler Shelvin the team is even more unrecognizable, BUT any LSU fan who didn't anticipate this change in personnel was pipe-dreaming on copious amounts of LSD-drenched paint chips and the solo career of Glenn Frey.
  Buuuuut....since today is TELL THE TRUTH MONDAY...we must point out a stark, obvious reality:
  Despite the loss of 35 National Champions to the NFL Draft (all still eligible for at least one more season, except seniors Burrow, Fulton, Divinity and Lawrence) as well as our current burst of opt-outs or transfers, this team not only has the same soul and 70% of the exact core as 2019, our guys have the same "business bounce" in their step as they run on to the field; inner-team camaraderie and morale was at an all-time high this summer and their intense bond only strengthened through the Tigers United marches.
  Since it's Monday, we have to tell the truth, so here it comes: bandwagon LSU supporters may be the biggest factor motivating this Tigers team and not in the way you'd expect.
  Many LSU "fans" posted stuff like "Alright...we only winning 3 games this year" seconds after Ja'Marr Chase and Tyler Shelvin opted-out or angrily chose to "boycott" or burn their Tigers gear in reaction to the Tigers United player marches against racism and police brutality...all happening in a simultaneous vortex of anger, frustration, worry and cynicism.
  You and I both know the players read a lot... or their families will, someone down the line sharing the fans' comments with their son or brother.
  Instead of causing every player on the roster to run for the hills, our guys doubled down and marched again...this time led by their coach.
  Our players are more unified in their quest than ever before, incredibly determined to prove LSU's doubters wrong for yet another season: if they successfully defend their title, the feat would definitely top the 2019 Tigers in terms of probability and expected victory...none of the national "writers" or media members believe this 2020 team has even half of a chance to contend with Alabama, let alone vanquish the Tide for a second straight year....at least a few gave Burrow and co a chance to overcome Alabama.
  Remember, most of LSU's big-time beat writers were extremely critical of 2018 LSU as that team evolved during the spring & summer of 2019...who among them called LSU "pre-season National Champions"?? Which writer even predicted LSU advancing to the SEC title game?
  Crickets.

  They're doing the same yet again and the storyline is all too familiar: an unknown quarterback, no "big name" receivers, too much NFL Draft turnover on both sides of the ball (one of the prominent 2019 preseason storylines was "HOW CAN LSU POSSIBLY MAKE UP FOR DEVIN WHITE'S ABSENCE???"
  Was there a linebacker on our roster who made you forget about Devin White?
  Hell no.
  Was there a linebacker on our squad who "replaced" Devin White?
  No, they didn't need to...these guys just became Patrick Queen and Jacob Phillips announcing themselves upon the scene like a pair of heat-seeking exploding nebuli, following in Devin's footsteps when they became 1st and 2nd Round Draft picks after their all-world exploits.
  In 2020, there will be new heroes, warriors and intriguing freshmen who rise and take over their respective positions.
  Also key to his vision, Orgeron has built enough depth to produce a bevy of strong contributors from the bench. Though some these guys might stay in the shadows of a true alpha starting over them, the 10 game SEC gauntlet will beckon all hands on deck, guaranteeing every fan's favorite player moments to shine (Marcel Brooks, Breiden Fehoko and Damone Clark last year, Patrick Queen and Tyler Shelvin's 2018 campaign for another recent example).
  LSU football has a rich, juicy tradition of guys waiting two or three seasons before getting an epic 1-2 year stint to prove they're among the greatest players in CFB (or at least LSU history)...what can we say, we love the comeback:

  Joe Burrow, Myles Brennan, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Justin Jefferson, Lloyd Cushenberry (battled behind Will Clapp and Ethan Pocic for most of his LSU tenure) after waiting behind JaMarcus Russell for 3 years, Matt Flynn led LSU to a National Championship (tossing a filthy 4 TDs in the 2007/08 BCS title game), Ryan Clark rose from Special Teams Player of the Year to LSU's starting Sugar Bowl-winning free safety etc upon etc.
  So, LSU has vision, they have a huge burden to defend last year's title and they possess strong depth despite the pandemic off-season...but what else????
  Are these frothing, foaming critics correct in skewering LSU?
  Telling the truth about LSU, what is the reality of this team right here, right now:
  There's two schools of thought, either fans are in a post-title daze, feeling no matter what anyone could say, LSU is movin on up with this new offense, this new aggressive mentality on all sides of the ball....
  On the other Saban-faced side of the coin, there's also the more popular perception that 2020 LSU is now a "wounded Rob Schneider" who's been backed into a corner, one arm dangling, one leg trailing behind, one eye and half of his brains hanging out...only the faintest hope for survival in the shrouded dark of his most dreaded abyss.
  These doubters shout:
  LSU HAS NO PASS RUSH.
  LSU HAS NO QUARTERBACK.
  LSU LOST THEIR BEST PLAYERS.
  THEY WERE ONE AND DONE!
  What if I told you NEITHER were true with 100% certainty? What if the truth was a purple and golden-covered grey area?
  2020 LSU suffered through July and August like John McClain in the middle of Die Hard: gritting their teeth through stupid jokes and picking pieces of glass out of their feet while communicating through some dumb speaker, isolated and dodging bullets as danger lurked around every corner...no hint of C-4 or German terrorists, thank gawd, just a dual hurricane killing 24 and causing 12 billion dollars in damage, the Guice allegations, a ton of opt outs, transfers and the 2020 Blues...

  However, when discussing LSU right now we feel a rush of excitement...not just because we understand the season is now only 5 days away, but due to the evidence we've witnessed from our current squad in action.
  Through the scrimmages (our first true glimpses of real hard hitting outside of practice), we learned a few very promising details about our current LSU squad:
 
 
 1. LSU WILL THRIVE MORE THAN SURVIVE IN THE TRENCHES

  Judging by their high octane performances, either line can hold their own on the interior...I would be shocked and infested with dismay if we witnessed this current crop of O-linemen or D-linemen regularly fold or fail this year. Though we understand just how strong LSU's 10 SEC opponents will be, none of those teams come equipped with Orgeron's bountiful depth of insidious talent in the trenches, based around a strong starting 5 on offense and a shuffling flurry of greats on defense.
  Obviously both lines improved greatly from this intensive competition and this second scrimmage's ebb and flow will be just what Orgeron's players needed.
  Keep in mind this one thought: in a Pelini defense, you don't always need to rely on the edge rushers or D-linemen to create pressure on a quarterback...in fact, the unpredictable blitzes from this defense will be an unusually special part of this rambunctious defense's identity, assisting the D-line.
 
 
 2. THE MOST PHYSICAL TEAM IN CFB

  This group loves to hit harder than 2019, that's obvious and apparent from even non-contact practices, such was their laughter and head-shaking disgust when having to halt a foot away from making the hit.
  When I saw that clip, I thought they were just joking about Covid, but as someone who loved to hit in football too, when watching Damone Clark's complete anguish, I understood they were missing the hard hits...and after watching #18 rock a few of the extremely good walk-on running backs (as well as continue a duel against all three sophomores), I understood Clark was itching to administer some punishment.
  He wasn't alone...frequently practices became bloodbaths of attrition, each guy understanding their performance was under the microscope at all times...
  Still, nothing could outdo the second scrimmage's appropriate savagery...you had the feeling even Myles Brennan's yellow jersey wouldn't be protecting him from this blood-covered insanity between the tackles.
 
 
 3. 2019 PT.II IS MORE THAN POSSIBLE

 
  I'm going to say it....2020 has all the makings of a definitive sequel to 2019, not only in chronological order, but the manner in which this team could and (most importantly) should explode reminds me of the 2019 team.
  Lightning in a bottle waiting to be released...
  Trade in Joe Brady's youthful energy for Scott Linehan's experienced professional intensity, Burrow for Brennan, Pelini's heavy metal asskickery drowning out Aranda's smooth jazz, the potential for a three-headed running back hydra: unstoppable in space or between the tackles, Terrace Marshall and Arik Gilbert instead of Justin Jefferson or Ja'Marr Chase...and you get close to what this team appears to be.
  As we wonder just how good these players really are as a cohesive unit in the pandemic era, we are reminded of the consistency of their Head Coach Ed Orgeron:
  As long as they buy into Ed's energy, his quest for domination and redemption for a second year in a row, this team should repeat as National Champions.
  Brennan isn't Joe Burrow, he's a different cat who's geauxing to rock and roll within the same framework offense that won Joe the Heisman; specifically tailored to allow Brennan's utmost success in the passing game, the RPO action LSU will lean on bodes serious doom for their opponents.

  Chris Curry isn't as fast as Clyde, but he's just as powerful and could be as productive, Tyrion Davis-Price and John Emery are their own breed of multi-purpose freakshow backs who can do it all...and we cannot wait to see any of the three deployed in the backfield.
  More than personnel or strategy, this team has a spirit about them...one hard-broiled by months of uncertainty and nonstop changes preparing them beautifully for a whirlwind all-SEC season....there is no team better prepared to navigate the bizarre circus only 5 days away.
  On tell the truth Monday, we feel it necessary to leave fans and team with these thoughts:
 
 
 1. MYLES NEEDS TO PROVE HE BELONGS ON EVERY SNAP, HE NEEDS TO FORGET THE MISTAKES. ALSO, GET THE BALL OUT QUICK AND FAST, MAKE A DECISION AND STICK TO IT WITH ZERO HESITATION
 
 2. LSU'S KNACK FOR CREATING TURNOVERS DURING SCRIMMAGES MUST CONTINUE FOR BIG-GAME SURVIVAL
 
 3. OUR WRs NEED TO REALIZE: THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY THEY MAY NOT RECEIVE AGAIN...THE #2 AND #3 SPOTS ARE WIDE OPEN AND LSU HAS MORE THAN ENOUGH TALENT TO FILL THE SPOTS AROUND TERRACE MARSHALL & ARIK GILBERT...WHO WILL BE THAT GUY??

 4. OUR FANS NEED TO SUPPORT OUR PLAYERS 100% 24/7 OR GEAUX SUPPORT BAMA
 
 5. JACOBY STEVENS WILL WIN THE THORPE AWARD UNANIMOUSLY

6. THIS TEAM DOESN'T BLINK

BLACK LIVES MATTER
 GEAUX TIGERS
 by LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN
 COPYRIGHT 2020 UNINTERRUPTED WRITINGS INC LLC
 
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