With Russell out, young hopefuls battle

By Darrell Laurant  |   Wednesday, March 08, 2006  |  Comments( 0 )

LSU Tigers
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It isn't always a bad thing when one of your stars has to miss spring football practice.

After all, you already know what he can do. And his absence, worrisome though it might be, is a chance to get an advance peek at the future.

That's the situation for the LSU Tigers since 2005 starting quarterback JaMarcus Russell is still recuperating from the separated shoulder that ended his season prior to the Tigers' appearance in the 2005 Peach Bowl.

Matt Flynn, like Russell a rising junior, stepped in against Miami and turned what was supposed to be the closest non-BCS bowl into a 40-3 rout. On the evening, he completed 13 of 22 passes for 196 yards and two touchdowns, including a 51-yarder to Craig Davis.

Indeed, the 6-3, 228-pounder out of Tyler, TX is becoming known for making the most of his opportunities. As a freshman in 2004, Flynn's first pass completion in a varsity game went for 67 yards and a touchdown to Xavier Carter.

All this should have been enough to make him the quarterback in the spotlight this spring in Russell's absence. But LSU Tigers' fans are even more eager to get a look at redshirt freshman Ryan Perriloux, the consensus No. 1 high school player in America two years ago.

At East St. John High School in Reserve, LA, Perriloux accounted for 12,000 yards in total offense and 155 touchdowns (84 passing, 74 running). He has a rifle arm and 4.45 speed, and he was recruited by just about every major program in the country.

"I think it will be fun for these two young quarterbacks to compete, get some playing time and show how good they are," said LSU Tigers coach Les Miles.

No matter how good they are, though, it's highly unlikely that either will dislodge Russell from the starting job -- not after a season in which he finished second in the SEC in passing efficiency, threw for 2,443 yards and 15 touchdowns. He also led the Bayou Bengals on four late game-winning drives. Most dramatic of all was the Alabama game, where Russell threw a walk-off TD pass to Dwayne Bowe in overtime on the final play of the game.

Justin Vincent and Alley Broussard should be the Tiger running backs, but like Russell, they're sitting out spring drills. This will allow Miles to audition highly-recruited redshirt freshmen R.J. Jackson and Antonio Robinson as well as true freshman Trindon Holland.

For a school with the tradition of LSU, the spring game is almost an afterthought. In fact, Miles said he hasn't yet decided whether to split up his squad and let them play, or simply to have a scrimmage in pads in front of the Tiger fans. Either way, those fans will be there.
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