College Football: West Virginia Looking for Payback Against LSU

The new-look Mountaineers are out to prove they can make up for last season’s disappointment in Baton Rouge. With the Tigers coming to Morgantown, Al Dannity breaks down the most explosive non-conference game of the weekend.

The biggest test
There’s no Andrew Luck, Landry Jones, or Kellen Moore on LSU’s schedule so Geno Smith might be the best quarterback the Tigers face in 2011. Smith should not be disregarded just because he has no Heisman hype. In three games this season, the West Virginia signal caller has completed 82 of 118 passes for 1,008 yards with 7 touchdowns and just one interception. Part of that is a product of the opposition but much of it is down to Dana Holgorsen’s offense.

Smith has improved his passing yardage with every game under the new Mountaineers’ head coach. There are however signs that this system is still very much a work in progress. Slow starts against Marshall and Norfolk State, coupled with a lack of pop in latter stages against Maryland were all causes for concern. Against a defense as unrelenting as LSU’s, any sign of weakness could prove calamitous.

They could get even better
Anyone who watched the dismantling of Mississippi State by LSU’s defense will find the following statement chilling. The Tigers’ co-ordinators think they were far from 100 percent in their execution. If this unit can hit the high peaks, then College Football betting fans should prepare themselves for a most historic season. Les Miles’ teams have always been strong on defense but now, with a seemingly competent offense, they could deliver the Mad Hatter’s first perfect season. With a meatier non-conference schedule than most SEC teams, the Tigers could enter their clash Alabama in November atop the polls.

The verdict
Holgorsen is already reminding College Football betting fans of Miles. At times his schemes and game strategies seem insane but they almost always seem to work out in the end. Right now however he doesn’t have the talent required to compete with a national championship contender like LSU. The Tigers may have a so-so offense but so far they haven’t made many mistakes. Jarrett Lee is never going to make it at the next level but the Tigers don’t need a NFL caliber quarterback. Lee looks a solid game manager. With a once-in-a-generation defense to back him up, that may be all Lee needs to be. I like LSU as -6.0 favorites with Sports Interaction.