LSU's passing fancy

Interesting story by the New Orleans Times-Picayune on LSU quarterback Zach Mettenberger

In the run-up to the Chick-fil-A Bowl the popular storyline has been LSU's physical, pounding running game that you often see from them on the big stage. But take a look at their late-season stats and you see an unmistakable trend toward a passing game.

Mettenberger came on strong in the final four games, starting with a 298-yard performance against Alabama. He threw for 1,070 yards and four touchdowns in those four games and completed 81 of 131 (62 percent) passes with only two interceptions, one of those the fault of the intended receiver.

It's worth noting that LSU failed to rush for 200 yards in any of those games, indicating a move to a more emphasized passing game next season.

Of course, the greatest fear among Clemson fans is LSU pounding their Tigers with a plodding, methodical running attack that shortens the game and plays keep-away from Chad Morris and his fast-paced offense.

But let's not pretend Clemson's secondary doesn't induce salivation when opposing quarterbacks pop in the film of this defense. Clemson has allowed 44 pass plays of 20 yards or more, ranking 87th nationally in that statistic. Dylan Thompson was a nobody before Nov. 24 but looked like a dynamic, high-precision quarterback that night, and you have to think Mettenberger is the more talented of the two.

LSU would be silly not to base its approach on ball-control, capitalizing on its big, physical offensive line and its punishing stable of running backs. That's not only the best approach against Clemson because of the "keep away" dynamic, as we saw last time out when the Tigers' offense spent 40 minutes of the South Carolina game on the sideline, but it's the identity Les Miles has worked very hard to impose in Baton Rouge.

Still, it's not a total given that LSU comes out and runs 10 straight plays up the middle. Maybe they come out and try to take some low-hanging fruit in the deep passing game to loosen up Clemson's linebackers against the run. It seems to be where this offense is evolving beyond 2012.

Another excerpt from the article:

Mettenberger isn't ready to lay claim to the offensive centerpiece title but is prepared to accept it if called.

"We'll see. I'll be a senior and I've already established myself as a leader of this team," he said. "We'll see how much he (Miles) wants me to carry the load."

His teammates talk as if it is going to happen. While he may not seem as demonstrative as some quarterbacks, he sets the tone behind closed doors. His game-day demeanor reflects calm and isolation during games rather than slapping helmets and showing other high-energy body language. On the practice field, it's a different story.

"If you got to see him at practice you would see Zach out there commanding things, like 'Hurry up, let's go.' If we're doing tempo, 'Let's go, get up to the line,' trying to put the defense in awkward positions," senior offensive tackle Josh Dworaczyk said. "When you're doing that on game day, you're really throwing curveballs at them. Zach's going to be able to do that, especially in this bowl game and hopefully next year."

And this:

With the extra practice time afforded by the bowl game, workouts become like a spring practice where less time is focused on game-planning and more on what the team will be in the future. Younger players get more snaps to audition for playing time while the older players sharpen their skills to hold off the younger ones.

The coaching staff also goes back into the playbook for formations, schemes and plays that were shelved until further notice.

"This is a game where hopefully we can develop the passing game more and know that going into next season it's going to be fully ready to open it all the way up," said wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., who caught 40 passes for 673 yards and two scores. "We were all getting better as the season ended and we really want to pick up where we left off."

Said Jarvis Landry, LSU's leading receiver with 52 catches: "We are going to be a lot better next season and the bowl game will show that. We've all showed improvement, but Zach is the key. We are going to depend on him even more, and with the running game we have, our offense is going to be hard to stop."

LW