Burrow wins tight competition against Brennan
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The aggressiveness with which LSU coach Ed Orgeron pursued Ohio State graduate transfer quarterback Joe Burrow last May indicated where he would fall on the depth chart.
Burrow chose the Tigers over Cincinnati and quickly set out to be their No. 1 quarterback. It took three weeks of preseason practice before Orgeron and offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger made the decision about the quarterback position.
Orgeron and Ensminger met with Burrow and Myles Brennan, the two remaining scholarship quarterbacks on the roster after Justin McMillan and Lowell Narcisse transferred earlier this month, on Monday morning. The two quarterbacks were then told that Burrow won the starting job.
“The quarterback race was very, very tight,” said Orgeron, who did not reveal Burrow as the starter at his weekly media luncheon. “Both are ready to go in the game. We see-sawed back and forth every day last week. We are sold with our decision. We have no problem putting in the second quarterback.”
Orgeron wanted to tell the team which quarterback won the competition before making a public announcement. LSU released the information following a 2 p.m. team meeting.
Orgeron stressed that there was very little separating Burrow, who was a backup for two seasons at Ohio State, and Brennan, who was the backup to Danny Etling at LSU last year.
“We made our decision after the final grades on both quarterbacks were in,” Orgeron said. “The quarterbacks received grades every day. One quarterback had 428 reps in practice and the other had 427 reps. Steve did a great job giving both guys their chance.”
Brennan completed 14 of 24 passes for 182 yards and one touchdown with two interceptions while appearing in six games last season. Brennan received meaningful snaps against Troy when Etling was benched at halftime. Brennan was unable to lead a comeback against the Trojans, who won 24-21.
Brennan was 4-of-7 for 68 yards against Troy, but threw an interception which hurt LSU’s chances at rallying in for a victory. Etling went back into the game. Brennan was unable to pull away from McMillan or Narcisse during spring practice. So, the door was open for Burrow.
When Ohio State coach Urban Meyer named Dwayne Haskins the starting quarterback at the end of spring practice, Burrow was ready to leave. LSU won his services.
“Joe came in low key,” Orgeron said. “He competed in every event he could. He was first in sprints. He was alone in the film room. Joe took control of the leadership of the offense. He made mistakes. He was not perfect. But, Joe would always bounce back the next day.”
In the two major August scrimmages, Burrow completed 17 of 37 passes for 238 yards – rather mediocre numbers. Orgeron acknowledged that intangibles come into play when determining a starting quarterback.
“You look for leadership in your starting quarterback,” Orgeron said. “You want maturity. Your starting quarterback has to be able to handle pressure and handle adversity. Again, the competition was not lopsided. Either quarterback would be fine with me.”
At his media luncheon, Orgeron revealed the positions at which the starter will be named following practice this week. Badara Traore and Adrian Magee are competing at right tackle. Kelvin Joseph, Kristian Fulton and Kary Vincent are in the mix to start at right cornerback back.
“Badara is a big physical tackle,” Orgeron said. “He is very tough. Adrian has more experience in our system. He is more fluid in his movement. Badara has more been consistent than Adrian.
“Kristian has been practicing with the second team. We’ll make a decision at the end of the week about how much he plays. Kristian will go in seven-on-seven drills this week. We will definitely put him in some situations against Miami.”
According to Orgeron, both defensive end Rashard Lawrence and tight end Thaddeus Moss will be available against Miami. Orgeron said that Nick Brossette and Clyde Edwards-Helaire will get the most carries at running back.
LSU has been picked to finish fourth or fifth in the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference. Their No. 25 preseason ranking in the Associated Press poll is the Tigers’ lowest since 2000 – Nick Saban’s first year as coach.
“We are better than people think we are,” Orgeron said. “Outside influences don’t affect us. Whether they pick us first or they pick us last, we still have to play. I believe we have a very good football team. We have to take it one game at a time.
“You play a good opponent and the good thing is that you find out about your weaknesses. This game is huge for us. It is huge for us in recruiting. We are looking forward to this game. It is huge to start the season off on the right foot.”
