It wasn’t Alabama flicking away Michigan impressive, but what LSU did to Washington Saturday night was still a major statement.
The Tigers (2-0) proved they are a championship caliber team, and that it’s downright impossible to beat these guys at night in Death Valley. Washington actually fought harder than Michigan did last week against the Tide, but LSU’s speedy a voracious defense was just too much in a 41-3 victory.
When it looked like Washington might put together a drive, LSU seemed to always make a big play and snuff out any hopes or offensive success. They got after Keith Price and put some huge hits on ball carriers. It was SEC football at its best.
Similar to last season, once LSU got the lead Les Miles went to his bread-and-butter — a pounding running game that allows the Tigers to churn out the yards on the ground. LSU has the definition of a stable of running backs with Alfred Blue, Spencer Ware, Kenny Hilliard and Michael Ford.
Let’s not forget Zach Mettenberger, the former Georgia quarterback. He has a strong arm and has given Miles a passer he can truly trust — unlike last year with Jarrett Lee and Jordan Jefferson. The only negative with Mettenberger is that cheesy, 1970s porn ‘stache (not stash, but I don’t really know what Zach likes to watch).
The Huskies have definitely improved under Steve Sarkisian, but Washington showed us again that they aren’t really ready to challenge in the Pac-12. UW may pull an upset this year, but the defense remains a below-average group.
It’s hard to imagine any real football fan thought Washington had a legitimate shot against LSU, but it would be nice to see a program from outside of the SEC actually make one of these road trips and look respectable.
We didn’t get it from Michigan last week and we certainly didn’t get it this week from Washington. Now we hope Arkansas can show us something when the Razorbacks host No. 1 Alabama.
Of course, you could also hope for big things out of Idaho when it plays LSU.
(Photo courtesy of Seattle Times)
