With the UCLA game now firmly in the rearview mirror, focus shifts to the LSU Tigers getting their first win of the season. On Saturday night in Death Valley, they will host in-state foe McNeese State. The game is set for 7:00 p.m. CT kickoff, both teams are looking for their first win of the early season.
While LSU fell on the road to the Bruins 38-27, McNeese dropped their home opener to West Florida 42-36. In the preview of the upcoming game, we look at the tale of the tape for the two starting quarterbacks.
Quarterback Tale of the Tape
How do the two quarterbacks measure up?
| Cody Orgeron | vs | Max Johnson |
| 6-1 | Ht | 6-5 |
| 192 | Wt | 219 |
| Senior | Class | Sophomore |
| 31 | Comp | 26 |
| 47 | Att | 46 |
| 66.0 | Comp % | 56.5 |
| 367 | Yards | 330 |
| 7.8 | Yards/Att | 7.2 |
| 2 | TDs | 3 |
| 0 | INTs | 1 |
The two quarterbacks definitely threw their fair share in the openers for both teams. Orgeron was slightly more accurate of a passer. He will be tested going up against the LSU defense, he will need to be on his A-game as they have formidable pass rushers and guys at the second level who can take the ball away.
LSU will likely win big in this game, but if the McNeese quarterback can take advantage of some of the miscommunication mishaps then he could make a game of it. After seeing some of the action in week one, never say never, but this should be a game that LSU wins convincingly.
A deeper dive into Max Johnson’s game:
Against UCLA you could see that Johnson was rattled with the amount of pressure applied by the Bruins defense. When he was kept clean in the pocket, Johnson completed 22 of 32 passes on 34 dropbacks. He showed poise and looked like the passer we expected. When he felt pressure, it was all bad.
Under pressure against UCLA, Johnson completed just four of 14 attempts with an interception. Those passes went for just 61 yards. Protecting the young quarterback could be an issue this year based on how the offensive line has looked over the last season plus.
He was able to beat the Bruins defense consistently when being blitzed. He was 18 of 29 for 246 yards with two touchdowns. They did get their lone interception when blitzing Johnson. The noticeable thing for Johnson was processing speed. He needs to speed up that decision to pull the trigger. The first opportunity will come on Saturday, that is one area to watch.
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