LSU Players Eager to Get 2020 Season Started Against Mississippi State

Clark, Brennan and Stevens talk preparations for Bulldogs, mindsets heading into game one

For the LSU football players, Saturday is the culmination of nine grueling months of preparing and waiting for the opportunity to take the field for meaningful games. After a quarantine, roster turnover and an offseason schedule unlike any seen before, the defending champs are ready to take on all of the challenges the 2020 season brings.

On Tuesday, quarterback Myles Brennan, safety JaCoby Stevens, linebacker Damone Clark and running back Chris Curry met with the media to talk about the season and Saturday's home opener against Mississippi State. 

All four are veterans who will be asked to bring that leadership, intangibles and past experiences onto the field for what is a relatively new group overall. Preparing for Mike Leach's air raid offense has been a heavy topic of conversation for the last week. 

It’s an offensive style that will be a good first test for Bo Pelini and the 4-3 defense. Even coach Ed Orgeron said on Monday that it’s been a tricky game to prepare for because the staff and players are pulling tape from his time at Washington State and mixing and matching personnel to prepare.

"The hardest thing about his offense is that he's always going to put his players in the right spots to make plays," Stevens said. "He knows his talent very well and what they can and cannot do. He does a perfect job of drawing up plays and putting players in position to maximize their potential."

Clark is ready to carry on his own legacy separate from past LSU linebackers like Devin White, Patrick Queen and Jacob Phillips. That linebacker rotation was one of the biggest question marks in the early stages of the offseason but with Clark, transfer Jabril Cox and Micah Baskerville leading the way, it's turned into one of strength along the front seven.

A big part of what comes with Clark's role as the middle linebacker is making sure the other players are where they'e supposed to be, a job Pelini has trusted him with.

“You are the quarterback of the defense. Coach Pelini puts the ball into your hands," Clark said. "I'm the Mike linebacker, so I'm the quarterback of the defense. If you know what you are doing, you are going to play fast.

"Football is aggressive and I like this aggressive defense. Our defensive mentality is hit or be hit."

With Mississippi State coming to town, one of the most important elements to Saturday's gameplan will be to try and get after quarterback KJ Costello. Clark has seen a ton of growth in the defensive line as fall camp has moved along and Stevens said it's the position group he's most excited to see this weekend against the Bulldogs.

From a quarterback's perspective, Brennan has noticed freshman BJ Ojulari, transfer Ali Gaye and senior Travez Moore as the most consistent pass rushers this offseason.

"I feel like we're unleashing the d-line this year and I'm really excited to see what they can do," Stevens said. "I think we're light years ahead of where we were last year, I think we're going in with a lot less questions and I'm excited to see what I know the d-line can do this Saturday."

On the offensive side of the ball, LSU will have plenty of opportunities to capitalize on a young, inexperienced secondary group for the Bulldogs. For Brennan, this opportunity has been four years in the making but the way he's approached this week is just like he has the last three years as a backup.

"I've run out of Tiger Stadium a good number of times and just because I'm a starter, nothing's gonna change," Brennan said. "I'm still preparing like I would've the last three years and now I'm going to be the guy to run out on the field first. Nothing's gonna change from a preparation standpoint and I'm gonna be my calm, cool and collected self."

One of the early areas on offense to analyze will revolve around the chemistry between Brennan and his receivers like Terrace Marshall, Arik Gilbert, Racey McMath and Kayshon Boutte. Brennan said that chemistry is still ongoing but extra work after practice has gone a long way in developing that rapport with all of his receivers.

"The biggest thing that we really focused on was just getting our timing down. Every day after practice we stay 15-30 minutes and go over routes we maybe missed during practice or routes we want to work on timing wise. I think that's been very beneficial."

The players will have to bring their own energy but Stevens said the team has been in camp far enough and that just seeing another opponent, particularly one from the SEC West is enough to get the team's juices flowing.

"I think we're not gonna struggle to find our own energy," Stevens said. "The first game is always the game everybody is most excited about because it's the first game. It's special because we open up with an SEC West opponent so there's multiple things that are gonna get us hyped up for the game."