LSU Football in Open Quarterback Competition, Ed Orgeron Says "Let the Best Man Win"

If there was one point LSU coach Ed Orgeron wanted to drive across during his spring practice opening press conference, it was that the Tigers are in open competition at the quarterback position.

Shove aside the fact that Max Johnson took the first snaps of the spring. Or the fact that he went 2-0 as a starter. Or the fact that Myles Brennan set program records in his first three starts before getting hurt. All four quarterbacks have been impressive in the early part of this offseason according to Orgeron and the competiton is only just beginning.

"With the quarterbacks, Max Johnson is taking the first snaps. He won the last two games for us. Myles Brennan did a tremendous job. TJ Finley did a tremendous job. Those guys are fighting for a quarterback spot," Orgeron told reporters on Tuesday. "Garrett Nussmeier looked very good today. I think they took all equal reps. Max took the first reps and I told him he was going to do that, but the competition is open and let the best man win."

Orgeron said the decision to let Johnson take the first-team snaps in during the opening spring practice stems from the strong finish to the 2020 season. The Tigers went 2-0 with Johnson under center and Orgeron wanted some "continuity" with the offense as spring began.

“That was my call. Well I know this, there’s one quarterback that’s 2-0 on campus here and that’s him. I gotta give it to Myles, he played good enough to win, there’s no question about that. TJ against South Carolina had a tremendous game. Garrett is very capable. There’s no favorite here I just thought that Max won the last two games, keep the continuity, let him take the first snaps."

All of the quarterbacks shared equal reps in the opening spring practice, a trend that Orgeron expects will continue as all of them learn a new offense and the new offensive staff gets to know the strengths and weaknesses of each player.

Orgeron was particularly complimentary of the veteran Brennan during his first spring press conference. Brennan is coming off a season ending abdomen injury that took months to heal but Orgeron says that you can't tell Brennan was ever injured with the way he's playing.

“Myles looks 100 percent to me. He’s done everything in the Fourth Quarter, he’s running around, he ran some bootlegs today and looked very good. He threw the ball very well, he’s not complaining about anything, he hasn’t missed practice," Orgeron said. "There was no surgery, nothing like that. It was something that had to heal on its own with rehab and as far as I know he’s ready to go.”

Orgeron said all four quarterbacks have been working closely with offensive coordinator Jake Peetz for the last several weeks trying to learn a new offense. For Brennan, it's his fourth in four years so learning new language and scheme designs is no new concept for him to overcome.

“You gotta give it to them, they’re learning a new offense again. They’ve been working hard, they’ve been working with Jake, they’ve been studying," Orgeron said. "These guys are very smart, very cerebral, hard workers. I think mastering the offense, getting the right reads down, get the run game down. We’re not only in the shotgun, we’re taking snaps from the center so that’s different. Just them being able to execute the offense and sees who’s gonna be the leader out there."

Brennan has impressed with his leadership skills according to Orgeron, something the coaching staff picked up on last offseason as well. The test of the true leader of this offense will come with which player not only does what's needed on the field but off the field as well.

Orgeron pointed to class attendance, grades, fourth quarter drills and as areas that will be graded well into August. Translation, if you're sitting on pins and needles wanting to know who the starter will be week one, you'll have to wait a quite a bit longer.

"Everything that they do counts. We’re competing,” Orgeron said.

Photo courtesy of LSUsports.