What is LSU Tigers coach Orgeron looking for in a starting quarterback? He said this
It’s a four-man battle for the right to be LSU’s starting quarterback this fall. While no one has won the job just yet, LSU coach Ed Orgeron knows exactly what he wants to see for one of the players to earn the role.
Orgeron talked about the Tigers’ quarterback competition at SEC Media Days on Monday. The competition between junior Justin McMillan, sophomore Myles Brennan and redshirt freshman Lowell Narcisse was closely scrutinized during the spring and jumped up this summer when Ohio State grad transfer Joe Burrow joined the mix.
Orgeron wasn’t tipping his hand Monday, but he did explain what he wants to see from the quarterback who ultimately starts against Miami on Sept. 2.
“Day in, day out, the operation, the leadership, to be able to execute the offense, to be able to call the protection, to make plays,” Orgeron said. “You know, the quarterback has to be able to make plays when not everything is just right. They have to make smart decisions, [have] accuracy, throw the football.”
Although Orgeron contends the race is still on, he spoke primarily about Burrow, a rising junior. The Ohio-native Burrow spurned in-state Cincinnati in order to come to LSU and potentially fix a Tigers quarterback position that has been unsteady for the better part of a decade.
Orgeron explained the connection of LSU safeties coach Bill Busch, who had been on staff at Ohio State when Burrow was a Buckeye, helped with building a relationship with Burrow and showing the LSU coaches what they would be getting in the quarterback. Busch’s scouting report proved helpful for Orgeron, but it was when he sat down with Burrow that he totally bought in to the idea of bringing him in.
“It wasn’t until we met Joe. We went out to dinner the first night, and then the next day, we may have had three-and-a-half to four-hour meeting on football, and Joe was excellent in there,” Orgeron said. “[offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger] was running the meeting, obviously, and going through some plays with Joe, some installations that we do, some things that he did at Ohio State. And he was excellent. And we felt that his knowledge of the game is able, his ability to run the offense, he can be a pro quarterback.”
Orgeron explained he wants LSU to have more an even balance of passing and running in 2018, which means whoever wins the job must have a strong handle on the offense.
Orgeron was also asked if the competition between his quarterbacks could still be going on when the LSU enters the season opener. Although that would not be the ideal situation for the Tigers head coach, he’s prepared for it go on as long as necessary.
“We would love this [someone to win the job before the opener] to happen,” Orgeron said. “I don’t know if it’s going to happen, but I want this to be a clear-cut decision. I want our team to see it and our coaching staff to see it in camp.”