Ed Orgeron Recaps First LSU Football Fall Camp Scrimmage

LSU was back in Tiger Stadium for the first time since the spring, holding its first fall scrimmage of the 2021 season. Ed Orgeron met with the media following a defensively dominated scrimmage to touch on a number of take aways he had from the afternoon.

A Look at the Stats

Of course all eyes are going to turn to the quarterbacks and both Max Johnson and Garrett Nussmeier had their moments throughout the afternoon. Johnson went 11-of-19 for 127 yards and a touchdown on the day with the first team.

Nussmeier truly showed some of the strides he’s taken this summer, completing 11-of-17 passes for 225 yards and three touchdowns for the day. Orgeron was extremely complimentary of Nussmeier in his postgame remarks and the mobility he’s shown in the pocket.

“His pocket presence, he's settled down a little bit," Orgeron said. "He's not being careless with the ball. The guy's a gunslinger, he can throw the ball down the field but obviously he knows now he's right there at the position. No telling, he could be playing at any time and he's spent this summer learning the offense."

With Tyrion Davis-Price out, Orgeron was pleased with how both John Emery and Corey Kiner ran the ball. Kiner even had one impressive run where he made two or three guys miss and hurdled over another.

Defense Wins the Day

One of the first points Orgeron made during his opening remarks was the dominance showed by the defense at times. Orgeron said that Ali Gaye, Andre Anthony, Joe Evans and Neil Farrell all had disruptive outings along the defensive line. Gaye had been limited at times during camp so the performance was a welcomed sight for the coaching staff.

“Those guys were really cranking it up,” Orgeron said. “There was a lot of third down passing situations where they could pin their ears back. I thought those guys did a tremendous job of pass rush today.”

Even with the team down starting cornerbacks Derek Stingley and Elias Ricks, the defensive line applied consistent pressure on the quarterbacks and the linebackers all had strong outings.

The Tigers were very thin at cornerback with their two starters down, using a lot of Darren Evans and Lloyd Cole, who each played very well in the scrimmage.

“Overall, it was a great scrimmage, mostly dominated by the defense and the quickness of the defensive line,” Orgeron said. “We gave up very few big plays with the first team and I thought we tackled well and put a lot of pressure on the quarterback.”

Orgeron mentioned linebackers Damone Clark, Jared Small, Nevonteque Strong and Micah Baskerville all had good days but notably left out Mike Jones. The Clemson transfer told the media on Friday that it’s been a different adjustment to playing in the box as opposed to outside of the box but Orgeron said he expects Jones to be a huge part of the defensive identity.

Point of Focus Will be Keeping Pressure off Quarterbacks

While the defensive line had a terrific day on the field, it was clear the offensive line had its struggles. Orgeron says the unit is still trying to find the right rhythm under new offensive line coach Brad Davis, who was brought in mid-June to the coaching staff.

Davis, who is known for his development skills, has a lot to work with on a starting unit that returns four veterans and left tackle Cam Wire, who also earned multiple starts in 2020. It was a mixed bag across the offensive line, with the primary struggles coming with protecting Johnson and Nussmeier.

"We've gotta win our one on ones and the techniques that we're using," Orgeron said. "Brad's done a tremendous job, he's only had the guys for a limited amount of time, we gotta make sure they understand what we're teaching. We've got a veteran offensive line but there was way too much pressure on the quarterback."