SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 7 , 2019. THE WASHINGTON POST EZ M2 D7
Howard’s Cover 0 defense, which
focused on stopping the run. But
Jackson and his receivers showed
poise that should extend beyond
the s eason debut.
Against Syracuse, the Te rps’
somewhat inexperienced offen-
sive line will need to provide time
for Jackson against a formidable
defensive front; that could be the
game’s most important matchup.
The Orange’s pass-rushing duo of
seniors Kendall Coleman and Al-
ton Robinson tied for second in
the ACC last season with 10 sacks
apiece, behind only Clemson all-
American Clelin Ferrell, who had
12.
“The best thing we can do is try
to establish the run,” Locksley
said, “and see if we can find ways
to run the ball and use our tempo
and, again, get the ball out to our
best skill guys as quickly and asMARYLAND FROM D1 often as we can.”
Maryland’s first-choice run-
ning backs didn’t h ave a showcase
season debut but not for lack of
ability. Anthony McFarland, who
could finish the year as one of the
best backs in the Big Te n, had six
carries for 1 8 yards. H e didn’t h ave
a carry or reception after the first
quarter. Javon Leake, another tal-
ented resident of Maryland’s run-
ning backs room, had t hree carries
for 2 3 yards.
Instead, Jackson and h is receiv-
ers had a chance to make a case
that this year’s passing game will
bring something new. During the
first quarter, which ended with a
28-0 Maryland lead, Jackson com-
pleted 8 of 14 passes, averaging
more than 11 yards per attempt.
The passing game has im-
proved “I feel l ike in every aspect,”
senior wideout DJ Turner said.
“We actually pass the ball a lot
more than we did last year. Itworks out b etter for u s. T he t iming
is down a little bit better. And we
have a great relationship with all
of the quarterbacks, if it’s Josh or
Pi g.”
Despite losing Jeshaun Jones to
a torn A CL in the p reseason, Mary-
land has depth at wide receiver.
Sophomore Dontay Demus led the
group with 100 receiving yards
Saturday, including a 62-yard
touchdown pass from Pigrome,
but L ocksley said, “One game isn’t
enough of a body of work for us to
say that he’s ready to take the role
of the alpha receiver for u s.”
Two other sophomores, Brian
Cobbs and Darryl Jones, each had
more than 50 r eceiving yards. And
though receiving opportunities
were confined to the first half,
other position g roups still c ontrib-
uted. McFarland caught a 14-yard
pass, and fellow running backs
Leake and Jake Funk had two
catches each. Tight ends Chigozi-em Okonkwo and Ty ler Mabry
each notched a receiving touch-
down for the Te rps, who finished
last season with just one score
coming by way of a tight end
reception.
So while the offense has yet to
face the challenge it will find Sat-
urday against Syracuse, the team
exited the win with reassurance
that Jackson might prove to be the
stable quarterback Maryland has
longed for and someone who can
deliver a passing game this pro-
gram has lacked.
“We realized we’re an offense
that, if we do the right things, I
don’t t hink we’ll be stopped,” Jack-
son said. “I think we have a lot of
answers to what defenses can
bring us, and if we just don’t hurt
ourselves and we execute and
make the plays we’re supposed to
make, I think we’ll have a good
chance o f being a great o ffense.”
[email protected]Orange will test the Te rps’ aerial attack
JOHN MCDONNELL/THE WASHINGTON POST
Maryland’s Josh Jackson threw for 24 5 yards and had four touchdown passes against Howard but said the outing “wasn’t my best day.”EARLY SHIFT
11 a.m. Ohio at Pittsburgh » ACC Network
Noon No. 21 Syracuse at Maryland » ESPN
Noon Old Dominion at Virginia Tech » ESPNU
Noon Cincinnati at No. 5 Ohio State » WJLA (Ch. 7), WMAR (Ch. 2)
Noon Army at No. 7 Michigan » WTTG (Ch. 5), WBFF (Ch. 45)
Noon Rutgers at No. 20 Iowa » Fox Sports 1
Noon West Virginia at Missouri » ESPN2
Noon Vanderbilt at Purdue » Big Te n Network
Noon Charleston Southern at South Carolina » SEC Network
Noon UAB at Akron » CBS Sports Network
Noon Bowling Green at Kansas State » MASN2
12:30 Western Carolina at N.C. State » NBC Sports Washington
1 Northern Illinois at No. 13 Utah » Pac-12 Network
2 South Florida at Georgia Tech » ACC Network
Despite being separated by only about 100 miles, Ohio State and
Cincinnati don’t have much of a football rivalry: They have played
16 times, with only four of those games happening this century. And as
you might expect, the Buckeyes have dominated, winning 11 straight
since the most recent Bearcats victory in 1897, when Ohio State’s
schedule included such powerhouses as Ohio Medical and Columbus
Barracks. So, yeah, this is a pretty big deal for Cincinnati Coach Luke
Fickell — who not only played at Ohio State but was a longtime Buckeyes
assistant and the interim head coach in 2011 — and the 73 Bearcats
players on the roster from Ohio, many of whom were not recruited by the
titan to the northeast. “It’s Ohio State everything, everywhere,” tight end
Josiah Deguara said this summer before Fickell prohibited his players
from talking publicly about the game. “You’ve got Cincinnati fans in
Cincinnati, but there’s Ohio State fans even in Cincinnati. I think for us
we’re just trying to go out and prove there’s not just one team in Ohio. It
will be huge for us and huge for our fan base.”... Army’s touchdown
drives in last week’s 14-7 win over Rice went for 95 and 96 yards. But take
away those two scoring sojourns, and the Black Knights mustered only
93 yards against one of the nation’s worst defenses in 2018. Michigan,
Army’s opponent Saturday , is about 10 steps up in competition and will
be getting defensive tackles Michael Dwumfour and Donovan Jeter back
after both missed the opener against Middle Te nnessee with injuries.
SWING SHIFT
3:30 No. 12 Texas A&M at No. 1 Clemson » WJLA (Ch. 7), WMAR (Ch. 2)
3:30 Central Michigan at No. 17 Wisconsin » Big Te n Network
3:30 No. 25 Nebraska at Colorado » WTTG (Ch. 5), WBFF (Ch. 45)
3:30 Southern Mississippi at Mississippi State » ESPNU
3:30 Illinois at Connecticut » CBS Sports Network
3:30 Grambling at Louisiana Tech » NFL Network
4 New Mexico State at No. 2 Alabama » SEC Network
4 Murray State at No. 3 Georgia » ESPN2
4:15 San Diego State at UCLA » Pac-12 Network
5 Louisiana Monroe at Florida State » ACC Network
If any team has earned the right to feel confident entering its game
against Clemson, it’s Texas A&M. The Aggies were one of only two
teams to finish within single digits of the national champions last season,
falling by just two points in College Station. But there’s confidence, and
then there’s this from Te xas A&M offensive lineman Jared Hocker on
Monday: “There will be an upset.” Aggies Coach Jimbo Fisher quickly tried
to erase the bulletin-board material when asked about it later that day:
“J ared better play well. It’s great to have confidence, but that doesn’t
need to be said.”... Nebraska did little last weekend to dispel the
skeptics who thought its preseason ranking was unwarranted: The
Cornhuskers scored twice on defense and once on special teams, but
their offense was dismal in a 14-point win over South Alabama,
generating only 276 yards. Colorado, Nebraska’s former Big Eight and
Big 12 rival , should present a more formidable challenge, though the
Buffaloes gave up 505 yards in a win over Colorado State to open the
season.
NIGHT SHIFT
6 Saint Francis (Pa.) at James Madison » NBC Sports Washington
7 No. 18 Central Florida at Florida Atlantic » CBS Sports Network
7 BYU at Tennessee » ESPN
7:30 No. 6 LSU at No. 9 Texas » WJLA (Ch. 7), WMAR (Ch. 2)
7:30 Tulane at No. 10 Auburn » ESPN2
7:30 Tennessee Martin at No. 11 Florida » ESPNU
7:30 Buffalo at No. 15 Penn State » WTTG (Ch. 5), WBFF (Ch. 45)
7:30 Nevada at No. 16 Oregon » Pac-12 Network
7:30 Western Michigan at No. 19 Michigan State » Big Te n Network
7:30 Arkansas at Mississippi » SEC Network
8 Miami at North Carolina » ACC Network
10:30 California at No. 14 Washington » Fox Sports 1
10:30 No. 23 Stanford at Southern Cal » ESPN
10:30 Minnesota at Fresno State » CBS Sports Network
10:30 Northern Arizona at Arizona » Pac-12 Network
At this point in his coaching career, it’s weird not to mention how good
Tom Herman’s teams have fared as underdogs: As coach at Houston and
now Te xas, Herman is 13-2-1 against the spread when getting points,
winning 10 of those games outright. And wouldn’t you know it, the
Longhorns are underdogs at home against LSU , probably for good
reason: Unleashing a new spread offense last weekend, Tigers
quarterback Joe Burrow threw five touchdown passes before halftime of a
55-3 win over Georgia Southern. Sam Ehlinger almost matched him with
touchdown passes on three of the Longhorns’ first four possessions and
four scoring strikes total in a similarly easy 45-14 win over Louisiana Te ch.
But the Longhorns are still mighty green on defense: Just three starters
returned from last year, three players made their first career starts
against Louisiana Te ch, and two were making just their third career starts.
— Matt BonesteelTODAY’S TV GAMESOther area games
Bowie State (0-0) at American International (0-0), noon
Marist (0-0) at Georgetown (0-1), 12:30
Kenyon (0-0) at Catholic (0-0), 1
Ohio Dominican (0-0) at Shepherd (0-0), 1
Mars Hill (0-0) at VMI (0-1), 1:30
Howard (0-1) at Youngstown State (1-0), 2
Richmond (1-0) at Boston College (1-0), 3:30
Virginia Union (0-0) at Hampton (1-0), 6
Virginia State (0-0) at Norfolk State (0-1), 6
North Carolina Central (0-1) at Towson (1-0), 6
Liberty (0-1) at Louisiana (0-1), 7:30
college football
BY GENE WANGJoe Burrow had seemingly led
the LSU offense into a new era,
one long promised but never fully
delivered.
He had tied a program record
with five touchdown passes dur-
ing last Saturday’s season-open-
ing win against Georgia South-
ern, needing just the first half to
do so. The normally grinding
Tigers romped, 55-3, for the most
points they had scored in a season
opener since 2000 and their most
in a regulation game since 2015.
But the senior’s reaction to the
performance revealed as much
about LSU’s commitment to
transforming its offense as did the
statistics.
“We still left s ome points on the
field,” Burrow said Tuesday. “So
we’re working to correct that.”
A far more demanding test for
No. 6 LSU comes Saturday night
at No. 9 Te xas, but it appears the
Tigers are ready to fully open
things up.
“I love it,” Burrow said of mov-
ing full time to a no-huddle
spread formation, crediting of-
fensive coordinator Steve Ens-
minger and passing game coordi-
nator Joe Brady. “I have a lot of
freedom within the offense to do
the things that I want to do. Coach
E and Coach Joe do a great job of
listening to my i nputs and actual-
ly implementing them. A lot of
coaches will listen and kind of
toss it to the wayside. I’ll come
with an idea, and you’ll see it in
the game plan the next day, s o that
fires me up.”
As has the addition of Brady,
29, who had spent the past two
seasons as an offensive assistant
with the New Orleans Saints. LSU
Coach Ed Orgeron has called Bra-
dy a “game changer” on the offen-
sive staff for his expertise in the
run-pass option and play designs
that get the ball to running backs
and tight ends. In the season
opener, 14 Tigers caught passes,
including five running backs, to
bring an element of the Saints’
prolific passing game led by quar-
terback Drew Brees and Coach
Sean Payton, for whom Orgeron
worked as defensive line coachin 2008.
Brady’s contributions come a
season after Ensminger started
Burrow on the path to directing
the spread. Last y ear Burrow, who
played two seasons as a backup at
Ohio State, became the first quar-
terback in LSU history to pass for
2,500 yards while rushing for
more than 350. His 3,293 yards of
total offense ranked second in
program history. He capped his
junior campaign by throwing for
394 yards and four touchdowns in
a 40-32 Fiesta Bowl win over
Central Florida during which
LSU lined up in the spread more
than it had in any other game.
Still, there was skepticism en-
tering this season that the Tigers
would rely less on the running
game, a program signature estab-
lished in 11-plus seasons under
Orgeron’s predecessor, Les Miles.
In 2018, LSU still ran 176 more
times than it threw. Burrow’s
completion percentage of 57.8
ranked 79th in the Football Bowl
Subdivision, he completed 20 or
more passes just three times (the
final three games), and he threw
16 touchdown passes all season.
Fast forward to the 2019 open-
er, when he completed 23 of 27
passes for 278 yards and those fivetouchdowns, two more than in his
first four games of 2018 com-
bined.
“Night and day, night and day,”
Orgeron said of Burrow’s d evelop-
ment. “Confident. He was on the
money [last week]. Very well pre-
pared. The lookovers at t he line of
scrimmage, he knew where to go.
It makes you have a lot of confi-
dence.”
Burrow was not sacked against
Georgia Southern, and that pro-
tection allowed the Tigers to
flourish with a balanced attack,
passing 39 times and running 33.
That r atio is a far cry from the LSU
offenses of the past 15 years that
came nowhere close to a 50-50
split between run and pass plays.
“I do believe we have the skill
and the knowledge to get people
open, to catch the football and
make yards after the catch,” Org-
eron said. “But we do have to
protect the quarterback first.”
Orgeron’s decision to embrace
the spread offense evolved in fits
and starts since he took over for
Miles on an interim basis follow-
ing the first four games of 2016.
The Tigers’ predictable run-first
offense had sputtered, scoring
just nine touchdowns in those
four games and averaging339.5 yards. Oregon elevated Ens-
minger from tight ends coach to
offensive coordinator and play
caller, and over the final eight
games LSU averaged 465 yards
and 32 points, scoring 38 or more
five times. Still, Orgeron went
outside the program to hire Matt
Canada as offensive coordinator
before the 2017 season. Canada’s
tenure lasted only one year, and
Orgeron reinstalled Ensminger as
coordinator before last season.
The full-time transition to the
spread already has accrued divi-
dends beyond a less predictable
offense or elevated yards and
point totals. There has been an
uptick in interest from high
school players as well, Orgeron
said. LSU recruits heavily in Te x-
as, and Orgeron emphasized that
the offensive performance in Aus-
tin this weekend could affect fu-
ture classes.
“They want to see us throwing
the football,” he said of recruits.
“They want to see us in the shot-
gun. The quarterbacks love seeing
it. The playmakers love getting
the ball in their hand. The run-
ning backs love it. Offensive line-
men love it. They love seeing you
score points.”
[email protected]For LSU’s long-retro o≠ense, it’s geaux time at last
MICHAEL DEMOCKER/ASSOCIATED PRESS
In LSU’s first game running a no-huddle spread, Joe Burrow threw five first-half touchdown passes.RICHARD SHIRO/ASSOCIATED PRESSTravis Etienne had eight carries for 4 4 yards and a touchdown as
Clemson edged Texas A&M, 28-26, last season in College Station.