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RED BATON, La. – The last question accepted by Ed Orgeron at his post-match press conference would not concern his team's next opponent, nor the targeting call against his linebacker, Devin White. LSU's Director of Sports Information, Michael Bonnette, has been watching this. "One more for the coach," said Bonnette in a room filled with reporters before a dramatic break, "about this Thu."
He was half joking. You will not often see a post-game press conference like this, where a victory of a few minutes at 16 points on a Top 25 team has been completely ignored by the media present. This is because LSU's next match will be against Alabama, first in the standings, and it will be without LSU that will have none of its best players and no hope that the NFL will be fished out for the first half of this year. match. Officials accused the Whites of targeting about six minutes from victory over a 19-3 LSU win over the Mississippi State at Tiger Stadium. This is an ejection penalty resulting in a suspension in the first period for the next match.
The local crowd booed the officials between each game until the end of the game and the songs of "Ref you suck!" Erupted in the half-filled stadium. Subsequently, players Orgeron and LSU lamented the imminent absence of a player who leads the team in tackling (by 22) and is considered the heart of the defense. Even Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards, a well-known LSU supporter and friend of Orgeron, who attended Saturday's game, went on Twitter to answer the call. "Someone is going to have to explain the definition of" targeting, "the tweet said. "From what I know, it was not that. #GeauxTigers. "
Officials reviewed the piece and confirmed the targeting call, and the SEC issued a statement after the match upholding the decision. This will stop two weeks of bickering at Baton Rouge over what appears to be one of the most questionable targeting offenses you will see. Yet there is nothing to do. There is no authorized call, says the league office. "Probably not having Devin for the first half," Orgeron said afterwards. "We had to make some adjustments that will hurt our football team. But, hey, we have to live with it. It is what it is. It is the rule.
And so, LSU must break his seven defeats against Alabama without his best player for the first two quarters. This is another juicy story of this year's drama-filled drama between the SEC-West powers, which will take place on November 3, after the two teams withdrew from Week 9. The restitution of the rivalry has everything to please, with two of the top five teams fighting for a playoff appearance. LSU did not beat Alabama in 2,555 days, and last year at Bryant-Denny Stadium, the Tide rubbed it with pre-match jumbotron clips from each of the previous six victories on the Tigers . There is the return of Nick Saban, former LSU coach, in the state where he won a national title in 2003 and where he now wins recruiting battles focused on the country's best prospects (for example, the Saban's opposing cornerback half, Patrick Surtain Jr. and defensive tackle Isaiah Buggs of Orgeron is comfortable with the last day's signature stunners). This year, there is another unique connection between the two schools: the starting midfielder from Alabama and the previous five-star candidate Saivion Smith, who was transferred from LSU 18 months ago, attended a junior high school and then signed with the band Tide this off season. His post-LSU career is not lost for those around the Baton Rouge football program.
CBS is expected to make LSU-Alabama its sendoff for the eighth consecutive year and both teams will meet for the 13th consecutive season in the top 20 teams. Tickets on the secondary market go up to $ 1,300 for a 50-meter seat, but even nosebleeds cost around $ 200. Battling midfielder Nick Brossette, a native of Baton Rouge and a fervent Tigers lover, who has already participated in four of these events, summed up the situation in these terms: "It's crazy."
The loss of LSU to the tide was delicate enough that Miles rarely used the word "Alabama" and did not speak about his predecessor, Saban. Orgeron took a different approach, magnifying the game during his introductory press conference. "You are judged by this game," he said then. "It's the nature of the beast. I congratulate him. I bring it. I can not wait for the day we beat those guys. "
Orgeron 's quarterback, Joe Burrow, is aware of the importance of it, even though the Ohio state transfer indicates that it is unlikely to be the case. is not native to "here below". "As soon as I got engaged, people even tweeted," Go beat Bama for us. "The pressure," says Burrow, who will start studying the film on the scarlet wave on Tuesday, locked up alone in a dark room at the Tiger Stadium, writing notes on a notebook to try to reverse the trend of the quarterbacks. The last three players – Anthony Jennings, Brandon Harris and Danny Etling – completed 38.9% of their passes, made four interceptions with just two touchdowns, and were sacked 13 times in four games. But LSU has been questioned all year and has responded by eliminating four of the top 25 teams. "Many people, if you told them that LSU would play 7-1 against Alabama, they would tell you that you are crazy, "said Burrow," I did not feel like that. "
The Tigers will have to play their game without their best defender for the first half. Jacob Phillips, the linebacker leaving alongside White, saw his teammate in the locker room after the match. He described White's behavior as "upset". He sent her a message: We got you. "We will play for him and play through him," said Foster Moreau. "I know Devin well. He's going to have his defense – and he's his defense – he's going to have these guys ready to play for 30 minutes without him. "
Here's a statistic that pretty much sums up LSU's performance against Mississippi State: midway through the fourth quarter, quarterback Nick Fitzgerald of the MSU got one more pass (four) than he had before. interceptions (three). The latter sent football back to the 1960s, with neither team crossing the 260-yard mark, and was dominated immediately after two weeks in the future. It's been weeks since LSU is considered the team that can finally organize a four-quarter fight against Crimson Tide and compel QB Tua Tagovailoa to participate in a very competitive second half. The Tigers did not really bring us much optimism on this front on Saturday.
Do not tell Orgeron, who, after asking another question about Alabama or whites, was mocked by a reporter: "We are going to d & # 39; first enjoy this victory. Maybe I'll give you the game plan on Tuesday.
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