Past vs. Present

Here's a post I made on the LSU board of collegefanatics.com, slightly modified.

Last year the three things that concerned me most were:

QB: Because I wasn't buying into the idea that JR "got it" just yet. All he did was go 10-2, but the defense carried the offense for much of the year. Not worried about it this year because of JR's performance in tough games and Flynn looking good against Miami. Not saying I'm expecting 35 TDs and 3,500 yards, but things look good. (I'm also expecting better QB numbers because of Bowe's eye surgery. For some reason, I have dreams that say, "LASIK = TDs)

RB: I thought Alley's injury was a bigger blow than a lot of people I read. I figured it would lead to Addai wearing down by midseason from overuse, especially if Justin Vincent hadn't returned to freshman form. I cringed every time somebody in the preseason said "We'll be fine." I'll give myself a reluctant pat on the back for this one. It didn't help that the offensive line rarely played up to the level of its talent. Not worried this year because of the freshmen. I'm completely fine with freshmen at RB, since it worked well enough in 2003. Charles Scott will be good if Keiland Williams won't. Even if Broussard isn't fully recovered, Vincent never gets back to where he was, and Hester stinks, I like the position.

DB: Just because we lost two starting corners to the NFL. I guess I needn't have worried, since the D ended up something like 3rd against the pass last year. Should be good again this year. LaRon Landry and Jessie Daniels should be a great safety tandem.

This year, here's what concerns me to start out:

DL: Losing three starters to the NFL really hurts, especially in the way of leadership. Replacements are talented but mostly inexperienced. Dorsey needs to be as good or better than Williams or Wroten for this unit to be a strength. I think there will be the potential for a lot of versatility, moving guys like Ricky Jean-Francois and Charles Alexander inside and outside depending on down and distance.

LB: Luke Sanders never stays healthy, and there's not a lot of depth if (when) he goes down again. Highsmith will be good, maybe great. Beckwith needs to prove he can do it as a full-time starter instead of a sub. Plug in freshmen at RB, okay. Plug in freshmen (Cutrera, Perry, Sheppard, Odom) at LB, not okay.

OL: You knew it was coming, right? I read that Dorsey and Co. gave the line fits in scrimmage, and you don't want that to happen against a DL with one returning starter. Ideally, I'd like to see Black, Arnold, Miller, Helms and one of the Johnsons (Herm if he's ready, Brian if he's not. But BJ seems more like a guard to me than a tackle) This is actually less of a worry for me than the others, and you may remember how down I was on the OL last year. I thought they underperformed most of the season. The dropoff won't be as drastic as it could be. I hope.

I'm sure I'll be talking about LSU and college football a lot more rather soon.