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With LSU one of many schools having started fall practice this week, the observations -- which are obviously of interest with the season now just four weeks away -- are starting to come out.
Times-Picayune beat writer Jim Kleinpeter offered up a few interesting tidbits Friday after the Tigers' second camp session, covering everything from the quarterbacks to the defense to the fullbacks.
Kleinpeter noted that quarterback Anthony Jennings, who is technically still on suspension following his offseason arrested related to an alleged campus break-in, was sharp in skeleton drills and showed a "tight spiral." LSU coach Les Miles has indicated that Jennings is unlikely to miss any games, so the performances in camp of Jennings, a junior, and Brandon Harris, a sophomore who was a highly touted recruit, will go a long way toward determining who starts for the Tigers in their season opener. Neither player was consistently impressive last season, and quarterback is perhaps LSU's biggest positional question mark heading into the 2015 season.
The defense, the Times-Picayune reported, has thus far been emphasizing turnover creation. Kleinpeter reported that the unit was split into three groups, with separate emphases on stripping the quarterback, stripping runners in the open field and how/when to try to scoop and score. New defensive coordinator Kevin Steele, who was hired to replace longtime coordinator John Chavis (now with Texas A&M), was running the latter of the three groups, and Kleinpeter reported that Miles stepped in at times to provide his own input.
Also of interest: The fullbacks might be taking on a different role this year. John David Moore, a former tight end listed at 241 pounds, and Tony Upchurch, who came to LSU as a receiver and is listed at 235, reportedly are the two players practicing at the position, which would seem to indicate a shift toward more of an H-back usage and perhaps less running-game involvement. It will be interesting to see whether LSU transitions toward more single-back sets or more fullback-H-back involvement in the passing game this year under offensive coordinator Cam Cameron, especially after a season in which a youth-oriented passing game struggled greatly.
(h/t Times-Picayune)
