LSU starting QB questionable for South Carolina game with ‘significant’ injury
The South Carolina football team could be facing the unknown when they face off with LSU in Baton Rouge.
Tigers coach Ed Orgeron announced his starting quarterback, Myles Brennan, is questionable with a “significant” lower body injury. The junior is in his first year as a starter after Joe Burrow left following his Heisman season.
“Myles has a significant injury to his lower body,” Orgeron said Monday. “Something that we do believe is going to heal. It’s taken a little bit more time to heal. And we thought he was going be back today but he’s not. And I don’t know if he’s gonna play his game.”
The coach’s tone was not upbeat when talking though the situation.
In three games, Brennan has thrown for 1,112 yards, 11 touchdowns and three interceptions. He’s completing 60.3 percent of his passes.
The next quarterbacks up are freshmen Max Johnson and TJ Finley. Johnson is a four-star prospect, while Finley is a big body at 6-foot-6, 250 pounds but wasn’t as highly regarded.
Oregeron said Johnson was a better scrambled and dual-threat type.
The LSU coach said he expects to tell one of the freshmen if he’ll need to go after practice on Thursday. He said both were ready to face Florida last week, but the game was postponed because of a COVID outbreak.
“We’ll see what South Carolina gives us on defense, and who best suits to play it,” Orgeron said. “But they got to have a good week, we’re not gonna give it to anybody. The have to perform.”
Respect for Will Muschamp
Orgeron and Will Muschamp have walked similar paths. Both coaches have been under fire are different jobs, Orgeron at Ole Miss, Muschamp at Florida and at times in Columbia.
And the two are friendly personally.
“Great guy, I love him,” Orgeron said. “I love talking to him. He’s always been a friend. always been a good guy, great defensive coach. I’m happy to see him having success. He’s not a big ego guy
“You got to credit him. He’s got his football team playing very well he made a change on offense. You can see the defense is playing with fire. ... They’re playing his temperament.”
Orgeron also reminisced about the last meeting between the teams. A game where he was interim head coach and the contest was moved from Columbia to Louisiana because of flooding.
Kevin Harris has Coach O impressed
One of the main tasks for LSU’s suddenly maligned defense will be slowing Gamecocks tailback Kevin Harris. The burly Georgia product is third in the SEC with 409 yards rushing and second with six touchdowns.
“He’s hard to tackle,” Orgeron said. “Hard to get down with one guy. He sees the hole outstanding. He can block, he has vision, breaks tackles and can catch the ball out of the backfield. He’s an all-around back.”
LSU vs the new offense
At heart, Orgeron is a defensive line coach, which means he’s taken a look at South Carolina’s new offense with it’s more downhill, pro-style persona.
He broke down the scheme the Gamecocks have run and how it meshed with an offensive line that debuted a new pairing at tackle last week.
“They’re very good on their double team blocks; they’re very well coached,” Orgeron said. “Their center can handle a nose tackle one on one, can reach him. In our game the nose tackle can’t get handled by a center. You got to get double team. I think that there are better run blockers right now than they are in pass protection.
“Their quick game enables them to hide maybe a guy that’s not as strong in pass protection, better run game protector. Their quick game with that quarterback and then No. 13 (Shi Smith) is phenomenal, the play-action game, their sprints and their boots. So they have ways to cover for that.”
Orgeron also spoke highly of star Gamecocks cornerback Jaycee Horn who vaulted onto the national stage with a dominant game against Auburn. He will likely match with wide receiver Terrace Marshall Jr., who has 424 yards in three games and is averaging more than 20 yards a catch.
Marshall Jr. was a teammate of Gamecocks defensive back Isreal Mukuamu in 2017 at Parkway High School in Louisiana but Marshall Jr. missed most of that season with an injury.
This story was originally published October 19, 2020 at 1:49 PM with the headline "LSU starting QB questionable for South Carolina game with ‘significant’ injury."
