4 Reasons LSU Couldn’t Keep Up With Alabama

1) No Short Passing Game

Nov 7, 2015; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; LSU Tigers quarterback Brandon Harris (6) looks to pass during the third quarter against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Regular readers of The Big Easy Believer will know that there is not enough space in this article to link to every instance the lack of short yardage passing has been decried in this site.

There are multiple problems with an over reliance on the deep ball in a passing scheme. For one thing, deep passes are less efficient than short passes.

Deep passes also take time. They take a lot of time. While long routes are developing the offensive line has to be excellent in pass blocking. The longer the pass play the greater chance the defense can get to the quarterback.

Defensive pressure means the quarterback may be sacked, or has to throw on the run which increases the risk of incompletions or interceptions.

The biggest problem with relying too much on deep passes happens when the running game bogs down. Deep passes aren’t reliable enough to keep the chains moving consistently. When the running game isn’t working this means the punting unit gets too much work, and so does the defense.

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When Alabama had the ball LSU was getting good penetration up front, and covering the Bama wideouts deep. In order to open running lanes and keep their offense moving the Tide started calling quick short passes out to the sidelines.

This obvious solution forced LSU defenders to cover more space at the line of scrimmage and gave Alabama more room to work on offense.

When LSU had the ball the lack of short passes allowed Alabama to crowd the line of scrimmage with an overloaded defensive front.

The Tide were able to smother the LSU run game completely and shut the Tigers offense down for most of the night.

One good thing here: Short passes are actually much harder for young QB’s to complete than long passes. Short passes require the quarterback to make accurate reads at the line and run through their progressions very quickly. They also require a lot more touch, something strong armed Brandon Harris struggled with against Alabama.

Harris still has less than a full seasons worth of starts for LSU. With more experience the game will slow down and he will get better at making those short efficient passes.

That will keep the chains moving when the Tigers running game isn’t hitting on all cylinders……