It was ugly. Most games with this LSU offense are.
Oklahoma beat LSU 17-13 on Saturday in a game that was not pleasing to the eye.
Let’s give our five takes.
FIVE TAKES AS OKLAHOMA TOPS LSU
TAKE ONE: Feel for the LSU defense – The LSU defense played their asses off on Saturday. In no way did that group put forth a losing effort. They stopped the run. They forced turnover after turnover and outside of one coverage bust, they were near-flawless. But you can only carry an offense so far.
TAKE TWO: Now we wait – And now we wait. LSU is going to get a new coach in the next 72-96 hours. I think it will be in the next 8 hours, and yes, I do think it will be Lane Kiffin. But until he announces, there will be anxiety. The season is over and now we wait.
TAKE THREE: Lots left on the bone from Van Buren – I didn’t like a lot of what I saw from Michael Van Buren today. To be fair, he was completely handcuffed by a coaching staff that did not trust him to do anything. But maybe there was a reason for that because instead of running for a touchdown, he threw a pick early. That sure saps trust. I also didn’t like that he slid on a 3rd and 10 late when he could have gotten the first down if he lowered his shoulder. You’re out there trying to make an impression on the staff – the next one included. You put some bad habits on tape today.
TAKE FOUR: Thank you, Frank – Frank Wilson will not be considered for the full-time head coaching position. And objectively, he shouldn’t be. But he kept LSU moderately respectable through an absolute firestorm and that is commendable. I hope he is on the next staff.
TAKE FIVE: Catch the football, 14 – Trey’Dez Green is a dude. But he does have a case of the drops. He has to start consistently catching the football going forward. He has too many easy drops in open space. Way too many yards left on the table.
TAKE SIX: Will this team play a bowl? – A coaching transition, a roster that’s likely to have some turnover. It’s not out of the realm of possibility to see LSU opt out of the bowl. I hope I’m wrong, but it’s not a certainty this team plays again.
TAKE SEVEN: Oklahoma isn’t making a playoff push – That team is as beatable as any playoff team in the field. That’s an SEC team that’s beatable as heck.
TAKE EIGHT: DJ Pickett is a dude – Man, that kid is special. LSU has a ton of holes to fill on defense, but DJ Pickett is a sure-fire NFL player someday. To be that good at cornerback with a 6-foot, 5-inch frame? That’s unheard of.
TAKE NINE: Whit Weeks is your leader – I’ve said it many times, so regular readers will see this as a broken record. But Whit Weeks is the leader of this football team. Playing on a recently healed broken ankle, Weeks was supposed to play 30 snaps on Saturday. I don’t think I saw him miss a snap the entire game. Dude is an absolute warrior.