Three Standout Players: LSU Football’s Run Game Gets Off the Ground, TJ Finley Shows Off Massive Potential
LSU needed a win like it got over South Carolina. It was a confidence and morale boost for the entire team and to pull it off without starting quarterback Myles Brennan, a team leader and veteran presence on the field, was an extremely impressive feat.
Coach Ed Orgeron knew that it needed to be a team effort if LSU hoped to get the kind of results it was hoping for against South Carolina. The standout performances on this list will come as a shock to no one but it's important to highlight these individual efforts in particular because they all tackle various elements this team will rely on moving forward.
TJ Finley (QB)
This is no surprise as the true freshman quarterback put on an absolute clinic in his debut with the Tigers. Finley threw for 265 yards while completing 81% of his passes and three total touchdowns in the win.
It was without question the most impressive performance by a true freshman to start at LSU, including Steve Ensminger, who started in 1976 as a true freshman himself. So Ensminger knew exactly how to handle the gameplan for Finley, designing plenty of runs, quick reads and run, pass option.
"I thought coach Ensminger did a good job of planning all week," Orgeron said. "He gets to work about 4:30 a.m. and leaves at about 11 p.m., even sometimes sleeps in his office. He's a great Tiger, a great coach."
Of course, the natural question, even during the ESPN broadcast, was instantly "does LSU have a quarterback controversy?"
"Everybody's just yearning for it, I can feel it but there ain't gonna be a controversy on our part," Orgeron said. "Myles is our starting quarterback and TJ has done a great job. I know this, if Myles ain't doing well, I can put in TJ and feel good about it."
BJ Ojulari (DE)
Ojulari, like Finley, is just a true freshman but he's making his presence felt through four games in 2020. Remember, he was the guy on defense that Orgeron was absolutely gushing over in the offseason, calling him a future All-American before he had even played a snap.
If Ojulari keeps turning in performances like the one he had on Saturday against South Carolina, it's only a matter of time before Orgeron's prediction comes true. Ojulari recorded four tackles, three of which went for sacks. Of his nine tackles this season, four have been sacks, which leads the team.
"I thought our pass rush was outstanding, led by BJ Ojulari, what a tremendous freshman," Orgeron said.
These are the kinds of performances LSU will need to continue to have from its players up front, particularly if the defense is still going to be giving up tons of yardage. Sacks, interceptions and fumbles change the trajectory of a game and that's the one thing this LSU defense has done pretty consistently over the course of these four games.
Tyrion Davis-Price/John Emery
It was difficult to pick just one as both Emery and Davis-Price were extremely instrumental in helping the Tigers have the level of success they did on offense. The two combined for 223 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.
They were hitting their holes with great fervor and getting to the second level of the defense consistently which is exactly the kind of performance they needed to keep the ball away from the South Carolina offense. But the real success came on first and second down, where the two did a great job of consistently getting the offense into second or third and short situations.
Because LSU had such a balanced approached, it was able to chew up 37:34 of the game clock and run 75 plays on offense as opposed to the Gamecocks’ 51.
"It's always good to warm up early and get my legs going," Emery said. "It was a cold game and to come out pounding like we did, it woke up South Carolina's defense. I'm so proud of my o-line and I'm so happy they stepped up big time this game. They gave us a huge confidence boost for next game."
