Ad Disclosure
Ed Orgeron wants LSU to get better, healthier in the trenches heading into the Swamp
By Clint Lamb
Published:
When you watch LSU play, the first thing that stands out is that they’re getting pushed around in the trenches. Whether it’s the defensive line or the offensive line, they’re simply not playing winning football up front.
On Monday, LSU head coach Ed Orgeron was asked about that, and this is what he had to say:
“I think that you bring up a good point,” Orgeron said. “We’re not playing the way we want to on both sides of the line of scrimmage. That’s one of the reasons I wanted to quit shift in motion, be more physical at the point of attack. But you know you’re playing two freshmen there. The guys are moving and they’re challenging our two freshmen.
“On defense, our best player is out, Rashard Lawrence. We don’t have Ed Alexander out there. We don’t have Frank Herron out there. So we have the guys that are doing the best they can. But Glen Logan was a redshirt freshman and played almost every snap at right end.
“It was kind of difficult to hold the point. We wish we could have rotated him but we couldn’t. And we think that we can have some help with Rashard Lawrence this week, and Ed Alexander and Frank Herron against Auburn.”
There’s no doubt that the injuries have taken their toll on the LSU defensive line. To start the season, the Tigers were without star pass rusher, Arden Key, who was still returning from a shoulder injury.
It was interesting to see Orgeron call Lawrence, and not Key, the team’s best player on defense. Key, who has 16.5 sacks in 24 career games, was considered one of — if not the — best defensive players in college football entering the season.
Orgeron’s first full year as LSU’s coach hasn’t quite gone to plan, but he does make an interesting point regarding the depth due to injuries. With the Tigers scheduled to travel to Florida next weekend, the issues in the trenches had better get solved sooner rather than later.
Clint helps cover the SEC West for Saturday Down South. His work can also be found on USA TODAY Sports, The 'Bama Beat podcast and The Bullpen with TonyMac and The Lamb. Previous stops include SEC Country, 247Sports and Touchdown Alabama Magazine.
