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Rapid Reaction: Etling solid, Fournette dominant as LSU tops Mississippi State
By Gary Laney
Published:
For the first time this season, LSU scored in the first quarter on Saturday.
That, in and of itself, justified Danny Etling’s first start at quarterback for LSU. The Purdue transfer was solid, Leonard Fournette was back and the Tigers held on for a 23-20 win over Mississippi State at Tiger Stadium.
What it means: N0. 20 LSU (2-1, 1-0) has a starting quarterback, and the Tigers again look like a team that can contend in the SEC West. Mississippi State (1-2, 1-1) was looking solid coming off a 27-14 win over South Carolina in its SEC opener but fell short in its late comeback bid.
But the Tigers jumped to a 14-0 first-quarter lead and held, keeping Nick Fitzgerald and the MSU offense in check and maintaining the lead all night before Louisiana native Damian Williams relieved Fitzgerald and rallied MSU to two late touchdowns.
What I liked: It was by far the most complete performance by LSU. Etling went 19-for-30 for 215 yards, keeping the Bulldogs from being able to gang up at the line of scrimmage on Fournette.
And with the defense being honest, Fournette had his best day, rushing for 147 yards on 28 carries with 2 touchdowns.
And the defense was dominant, consistently putting pressure on Fitzgerald, who rarely had open receivers to throw to, going 12-for-24 for 120 yards before being relieved by Williams late. Williams led the Bulldogs to a touchdown.
What I didn’t like: After the quick start, LSU’s offense went back into neutral late and LSU almost blew the game.
What’s concerning as well is the offensive line got banged up. Right tackle Toby Weathersby went down with an ankle injury, left guard Will Clapp got banged up and left tackle K.J. Malone had issues with cramps. The Tigers’ offensive line has been injury-prone this season, and Saturday was no exception.
For the second time this season, kicker Colby Delahoussaye had a PAT attempt blocked, and the Tigers had a bad special teams day in general, allowing the Bulldogs to recover a late onside kick.
For Mississippi State, the quarterback situation again looks unsettled as Williams was more effective than Fitzgerald in his limited action.
Who’s the man: LSU pressured Fitzgerald all night, and defensive linemen Arden Key, Lewis Neal (1.5) and Davon Godchaux (1) were all involved in sacks.
Key’s sack of Williams on fourth down wrapped up the win and gave him his fifth sack in three games.
Dave Aranda’s defense held the Bulldogs to 270 yards, and a big part of that was the most dominant performance of the season by the defensive front.
Key play: LSU’s first touchdown was a 37-yard pass to D.J. Chark, who barely stayed inbounds in the back of the end zone while hauling in a perfectly placed pass by Etling.
Two things were established in that play: Etling was more accurate than former starter Brandon Harris had been, and by giving Chark his first career touchdown, he also showed himself to be a more equitable distributor of the ball. He completed passes to seven different players playing four positions.
A clutch 59-yard punt by freshman Josh Growden gave MSU a long field for its last possession.
What’s next: LSU heads to Auburn in another huge SEC game. The other Tigers are also coming off a big SEC West game against Texas A&M. Mississippi State visits UMass next week.
