By RON HIGGINS, Journal Sports
BATON ROUGE — Having an extremely beatable but attractive non-conference opponent the week before an open date is perfect timing for LSU.
The No. 19 ranked Tigers, 5-2 overall and having completed a five-game SEC gauntlet 4-1 and still in position to win the league’s Western Division, welcome a historical non-conference opponent Saturday. Army, coming off a 19-0 home loss to Troy marking the first time since 2003 the Cadets had been shut out, makes its Tiger Stadium debut as a 30-point underdog.
“The respect that we have for the academies and certainly our great leaders that are playing collegiate football,” LSU head coach Brian Kelly said, “to have them and host them here at Tiger Stadium is a thrill and we want to be able to honor that.”
Also, since the Tigers’ will be without starting offensive tackle Emery Jones Jr. (sprained ankle) and starting defensive tackle Mehki Wingo (lower-body injury), they essentially have two weeks (because of a subsequent open date) to heal before LSU’s pivotal SEC game at Alabama on Nov. 4.
“From an injury standpoint, we’re always going to be deliberate and making sure these guys are 100 percent moving forward,” Kelly said.
Kelly, in his 33rd season as a head coach, has a chance to record the 300th win of a career that started in 1991 at Grand Valley State where he eventually won two consecutive NCAA Division II national championships in 2002 and 2003.
“My first game at Grand Valley State with maybe 300 people there, I could hear the school president in an open press box window say `Who in the hell hired this guy?’,” Kelly said. “So, I didn’t think I would be in this business very long.”
But even with a probable win in a more relaxed atmosphere this upcoming weekend, Kelly wants to see the same attention to detail the Tigers displayed in every phase of the team in the 48-18 beatdown of Auburn last Saturday night at Tiger Stadium.
“This week, we need to focus on our development, we need to focus on our process and we need to focus on Army,” Kelly said. “If we focus on anything else, we’ll get beat.
“This football team (LSU) is not a team that can play with the dimmer. We’re either on or off. And so we need to be on. If we’re locked in and doing our thing the right way, we’re going to have a good Saturday. If we’re not, we’re going to struggle.”
KNOW YOUR ENEMY
LSU (5-2 overall) vs. Army (2-4 overall), Tiger Stadium, Saturday, 6:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Last game for Army: Lost at home 19-0 to Troy. It was the first time Army had been shut out at home since 2003. Army struggled going 2-13 on third downs in the game, totaling 255 total yards. Freshman QB Champ Harris played the entire second half after starter Bryson Daily left the game with an injury in the second quarter. Harris completed 6 of 13 passes for 63 yards, was intercepted once and ran nine times for minus 17 yards and losing two fumbles. Before leaving the game, Daily was 3 for 4 passing for 15 yards and rushed 10 times for 46 yards. Army freshman running back Kanye Udo rushed for a season-best 124 yards on 18 carries.
Series record and last meeting: LSU and Army have previously played once in one other time in 1931 when the Black Knights posted a 20-0 win at Michie Stadium in West Point, N.Y. The game against Army in 1931 came one week after LSU played the first night game in Tiger Stadium, dropping a 12-6 decision to Sewanee.
Army head coach: Jeff Monken (104-68 in 15 seasons overall, 66-53 in 11 seasons at Army)
THIS AND THAT:
Appearance fee paid by LSU to Army per game contract: $1.6 million and 400 complimentary tickets
Early betting line: LSU by 30
Number of Louisiana natives on Army roster: 3
Number of New York state natives on LSU roster: 0
ARMY PLAYERS TO WATCH
QB Bryson Daily (42 of 77 for 712 passing yards, 6 TDs, 4 interceptions and 412 rushing yards and 3 TDs on 100 carries), WR Isaiah Alston (9 catches for 266 yards, 2 TDs), RB Hayden Reed (191 rushing yards, 2 TDs on 47 carries), OLB Jimmy Ciarlo (27 tackles, 3½ tackles for loss, 3 sacks, 1 PBU, 2 QB hurries, 1 forced fumble), DB Cameron Jones (28 tackles, 3½ tackles for loss, 1 interception,21 PBU, 1 QB hurry, 1 blocked kick), PK Quinn Maretzki (7 for 8 FG, 13 of 13 extra points), P Cooper Allen (22 for 37.73 ypk, 5 inside the 20, 6 fair catches, 3 plus 50-yard punts), KO Cole Talley Paxton Brooks (28 for 64.7 ypko, 23 touchbacks), KR Zach Mundell (3 for 64 yards), PR Cameron Jones (3 for 33 yards)
POP QUIZ
- Army running backs Doc Blanchard and Glenn Davis won the 1946 and 1947 Heisman Trophy respectively. What were their nicknames?
A. Mr. Hit and Mr. Run
B. Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside
C. Mr. Twist and Mr. Fist
D. Mr. Chunky and Mr. Hunky
- What distinction did former LSU head coach Paul Dietzel hold when he became Army’s head coach in 1962?
A. He was the first Army coach with all of his teeth intact
B. He was the first Army coach who already had served in the Navy
C. He was the first non-Army graduate named as Army’s head coach
D. He was the first Army coach who didn’t how to shoot a gun
- What is Army’s mascot?
A. G.I. Joe
B. A hunting dog
C. Lieutenant Dan
D. A mule
ANSWERS: 1-B, 2-C, 3-D.
Contact Ron at ronhigginsmedia@gmail.com