It is the opening weekend of the NCAA football season and the first major college football game to be played at the home of the Green Bay Packers. While the matchup on paper seems inviting, the end result may be anything but.
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LSU scored 14 points in less than 90 seconds during the third quarter, but the Wisconsin Badgers came back to win 16-14 at Green Bay’s historic Lambeau Field, snapping the Tigers’ 13 win streak in season openers which dates back to a Nick Saban loss at Virginia Tech in 2002. That said, the Tigers have lost four of their past six since a year ago and haven’t looked good in defeat, typically hamstrung by the same offensive issues that have plagued LSU much of the Les Miles era. Definitely, which brings us to my point: if Harris can improve upon a year ago and carry more of the load, he can win the Tigers the game.
Chryst has a tough opener to try to reestablish the Badgers running game, which slipped to a paltry 150 yards per contest in 2015. The line is the engine that powers the running game, another Wisconsin staple. The good news is Clement is back, as are three offensive line starters from previous year. The OVER is 4-0 in LSU’s last four games as a favorite of 9.5 points or more.
To Chryst, the changeover on defense isn’t about developing a new identity under Wilcox. In fact, rumors have been circling around LSU that Leonard Fournette could be called upon to return kicks this season. After a miserable, 0-3 11st quarter, Harris had bounced back to ave a somewhat decent line, only to make the kind of mistake a QB can not make. Mississippi State had 382 total yards in the first game of the post-Dak Prescott era, but the Bulldogs’ secondary – which was a big question mark entering the season – was shredded by Jaguars QB Dallas Davis, who was 24-of-33 for 285 yards and two TDs in his first college start.
Kickoff for is set for 3:30 p.m. ET. He had a pick 6 and a huge fumble recovery that would eventually put LSU up 14-13.
LSU’s Tre’Davious White intercepted a Bart Houston pass and returned the ball 21 yards for a touchdown to make it 13-7. But Harris again displayed poor touch on short throws. “It looks like he loves playing the game”.
The Badgers plan to play out of the same base 3-4 defensive scheme that Aranda used to great success in his three years in Madison.
Despite all the recruiting star talent USC gets each year, the Trojans were very average on defense in 2015 and downright disgusting at stopping the pass. “He was tackled past year, as good as he is”, UW secondary coach Jim Leonhard joked.
“It was honestly unbelievable when I turned around and saw that D’Cota had the ball in his hands”, Wisconsin linebacker T.J. Watt said.
0 Victories in regular-season games against SEC opponents for Wisconsin. Wisconsin’s Chikwe Obasih recovered at the LSU 36. Five starters are back with just one (Biegel) being a senior.
LSU put together its longest drive of the game – seven plays, 49 yards – but was stalled at the Wisconsin 34 when Dupre couldn’t haul in a pass inside the red zone. Ask anyone in the know about either party, and you’re likely to get a confident smile along with the description of their capabilities.
“I promise you that if anybody jumps (for) the Lambeau Leap, they’ll end up with their thumb out to see if they can get a ride home”, Miles said.
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Junior strong safety Jamal Adams will be someone to watch for on LSU’s defense. Pushing the issue up front for the Tigers is nose guard Davon Godchaux, a preseason Outland Trophy nominee. Experience could pay off, but the line will need to be a wall against LSU’s defense.
