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By LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN
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Following LSU's regular season finale victory over A&M on Senior Day, finishing 9-3 over 12 games, yet another season is in the books, the final fall of the SEC West before conference realignment begins next August.
With just one more game remaining in the distant future ahead, we now have a full picture of who stood out as the 10 best Tigers of 2023....without further explanation, we're going to dive right in, just as we've done every season in which we've covered the team:
The countdown so far....
8. LOGAN DIGGS
9 GAMES
652 RUSHING YARDS
118 CARRIES
5.5 PER RUSH
734 TOTAL YARDS
7 RUSHING TDs
Tacking on 652 rushing yards and 7 TDs over 9 games, running back Logan Diggs became the workhorse of Frank Wilson's bottomless backfield stable, complimenting Heisman-winning QB Jayden Daniels' own rushing artistry with a more traditionally violent, downhill running style.
Finishing his first season at LSU as the team's 4th most productive player, his 734 total yards stood behind only Heisman winner Jayden Daniels, the real Biletnikoff Malik Nabers, and Brian Thomas Jr....outgaining the next closest Tiger (Kyren Lacy) by 271 total yards.
It's not a stretch to feel the former Notre Dame transfer could've topped 1,000 yards on the ground if he started & appeared in every game.
Though injuries kept him out of some crucial games this past fall (Florida St and Florida), Diggs was without question Frank Wilson and offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock's first choice back, averaging 5.5 yards per rush from 118 carries (adding 8 catches for 82 yards as a pass-catcher).
Throughout his debut campaign back home, Diggs delivered electric viewing, stiff-arming defenders in raging rejection & unerring defiance, making creative & scenic cuts into the second level, twisting or kniving his way through the guts of opponents with the vision & touch of a surgeon, breaking tackles left, right, center, over, under or around, it was as if the Louisiana native was made to play running back at LSU.
Across 348 overall offensive snaps, Logan Diggs ravaged defenses when given the opportunity, but only reached in excess of 20 carries in only one game, a win vs Missouri where the Metairie-born Tiger came up clutch.
Recording 3 games over 100 yards and 2 further appearances reaching 97 apiece, the former Rummel High Raider was extremely effective even while receiving fewer attempts than his production may have warranted.
In fact, there were 4 games where Diggs carried the ball under 10 attempts, even as he played 148 more snaps than Josh Williams, 267 more than Noah Cain, 274 more than John Emery Jr, 284 more than Kaleb Jackson.
Due to injuries at the start and end of the year, most of Diggs' production stemmed from 5 games in the middle of LSU's schedule: 115 vs Grambling, 97 against Arkansas, 101 over Ole Miss, the aforementioned 134 vs Mizzou, and another 97 yards against Auburn.....a fact that enhances Diggs' 2023 greatness.....the what ifs are numerous....
More impressive, Logan gained 347 of his 652 rushing yards after contact, supplying 18 runs of 10+ yards, earning 41 first downs, 13 3rd down conversions, all as he made 19 would-be tacklers miss.
Diggs' 2023 will be intriguingly judged this coming offseason; timing didn't seem to be on his side, as injuries forced him to either completely miss or severely limit him to a peripheral role during the season's two costliest defeats, Florida State and Alabama.
If LSU had been able to compliment Daniels' ground output alongside Diggs for those two games, not to mention the high octane aerial powerhouse of Nabers & Thomas Jr, everyone within Mike Denbrock's offense would start to get open by a few more yards, gaps up front begin to widen, defensive linemen ultimately tire into exhaustion as LSU's Joe Moore Award-nominated OL take over.....the total offensive balance wearing each opposition defense ragged until they collapse under their own battered fear and bruised consciousness.
....that was the best version of the 2023 LSU offense, which we witnessed vs Ole Miss, Arkansas, and Florida (though they had moments in every single game)....if LSU could've run the ball more effectively throughout every game of 2023, perhaps this team could've been vying for an SEC and CFP title regardless of their porous defense.....no, they were that bad....I take that back.
Logan Diggs greatly contributed to LSU's 9 win 2023 season: he showcased incredible production when given precious few opportunities to run the ball, added a receiving threat from running back, plus his blocking, when protecting QB Jayden Daniels, was occasionally brilliant and mostly textbook.
Usually forgotten as a solid, consistent contributor to Denbrock's historic offense, Diggs deserves a spot in our 2023 top 10, not only due to the quality production, but the carnal thrust he gave LSU's offense opened up the entire field for his teammates, truly forcing each opponent to defend every blade of grass.
By LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN
©️ 2023 Uninterrupted Writings Inc, a subsidiary of Uninterrupted Media LLC
I think there is a lot more to Logan Diggs and he is going to have a breakout year in 2024. 🙏🏻💜💛
Stepped right in. He was a bell cow, and really stepped up big.