Three Goals For Second LSU Football Scrimmage

LSU is set to play it's second preseason scrimmage of fall camp Saturday afternoon. After a first scrimmage that was won by the defense, it's important for the offense to gain some momentum while most importantly, keeping everyone healthy.

Here are a few goals for the second scrimmage:

Stay Healthy

Walking away from Saturday afternoon's scrimmage, LSU will need to put an emphasis on keeping the players healthy. The Tigers will be down Derek Stingley and potentially a number of other players who were wearing gold non-contact jerseys at practice this week.

Simply put, LSU can't afford to lose many more bodies for any portion of fall camp. Coach Ed Orgeron talked about the fine line the coaching staff needs to walk this weekend in not pushing the players too hard in the scrimmage while also needing to get the work in.

"I'm going to see how healthy we are on Saturday and see how the number of plays that we can go," Orgeron said. "Maybe limit the type of scrimmages that may cause injuries to offensive line like goalline and short yardage and limit those guys, maybe just have teach periods then and just adjust to the injuries that we have.

Offensive Line Show Improvement in Communication

The offensive line has heard it all week from coaches and media alike, there needs to be improvement in communication during Saturday's scrimmage. Out of everything said from the first scrimamge, the defensive line thoroughly dominating the o-line was the primary takeaway.

LSU will have one of the deepest defensive lines in the SEC this season so it's good practice for the offensive line now. But there needs to be improvement shown in protection, which boils down to better communication across the line.

"It's going to be working on picking up different blitzes, helping each other pick up line games and creating a good pocket awareness for the quarterback," offensive lineman Ed Ingram said. "We gotta work on not getting pushed back in the pocket so the quarterback can have some room and be comfortable."

This is a veteran group with a lot of promise and plenty of expectations on its shoulders for this season. Keeping a clean pocket for Max Johnson to operate and opening holes for a talented running back group is the key to unlocking that 2019 offensive efficiency. If offensive coordinator Jake Peetz doesn't have to worry about protection breakdown, it'll let him be more creative with the offense.

Linebacker Mike Jones Jr. Takes Big Leap in Right Direction

Jones came to LSU with one goal in mind, to become an every down linebacker who can play in the box. In meeting with the media for the first time this week, he talked about a few of the struggles he's had adjusting to that role.

“It’s been a challenge,” Jones said. “Since high school, my game has been more outside and it’s a different game. It’s a lot more physical and faster, but I have great teammates and great coaches and they've helped me develop as fast as I can. There’s a lot of competition in that linebacker room, so I’m trying not to get left behind. I’ve gotten better and we’ve gotten better as a whole.”

Orgeron himself has mentioned the improvements of Damone Clark, Micah Baskerville, Navonteque Strong and Jared Small over the last few interviews but hasn't mentioned much of Jones. There's no doubt that Jones will be a significant piece of this defense in 2021 but he does need to show the coaching staff he can be a reliable every down linebacker. No better place to start than Saturday's scrimmage.