On LSU’s NFL Draft Exodus And Which Players To Watch For In 2013

January 7, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Les Miles will still have plenty to cheer in 2013

On Sunday morning LSU junior safety Craig Loston requested his Twitter followers stop asking him if he were going pro or staying for his senior season. Loston’s tweet surprised many because he seemed like one of the only draft-eligible juniors not mentioned as an early departure. Instead, LSU could have as many as 10 early entrants into April’s draft – an unprecedented number seven greater than any other season in Tiger football history.

With its underclassman exodus, LSU is positioning itself as the Kentucky of college football, selling recruits an advanced timetable to achieve millions. Kentucky’s basketball team, you might recall, had six players leave early for the NBA draft after it won the NCAA title in April 2012. All college football/basketball teams exist as farm clubs for their respective pro sports but these programs have set themselves apart as Triple A clubs.

While there’s nothing wrong with LSU coaches emphasizing this assembly line approach, the sheer mass of players leaving early in 2012 – both in talent and leadership – will present an interesting test case for college football. There is reloading, which all the great programs do on a yearly basis, and then there is RELOADING, which LSU and Coach Les Miles will attempt in 2013.

Here’s a breakdown of “LSU’s NFL Draft Exodus” and who I think will replace the Tigers departing early:

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Filed Under: College football, LSU, Sports Tagged With: , , ,

Damn The Tide: An LSU Fan Picks Who To Root For In The BCS Chase

November 5, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Bama fans ... HA!

Today on the subway a man in a business suit struck up a conversation with me about something near and dear to my heart. The self-described BYU grad and I did not talk about Mormonism or multiple wives or HBO’s Big Love. We talked LSU football.

The bespectacled man offered his condolences after noticing my LSU beanie. The previous night my home state Tigers lost a 21-17 heartbreaker to Alabama. The ebbs and flows of the game led me to curse the entire state of Alabama, as well as its football team.

My fellow “D” train traveler informed me he was rooting for LSU. Like most college football fans, he is ready for the SEC’s six year BCS title reign to end. An Alabama loss would likely have closed the door on an SEC team making the title game, while opening the door wider for teams in other conferences – Oregon, Kansas State – plus Notre Dame. I don’t care about any of that though. I wanted to see LSU win and Bama lose.

You read the headline. I am not rooting for Alabama. I don’t care if a Crimson Tide loss means the SEC fails to win its seventh straight BCS football title. Damn the Tide!

Below are my thoughts on the four undefeated teams still in the hunt and their odds of making the BCS National Championship Game, given their remaining schedules. All statistics are based on information entering Week 11. You can view BCS rankings here.

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Filed Under: College football, Football, LSU, Sports Tagged With: , , , ,

5 Thoughts On LSU’s Win Over Texas A&M

October 21, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Mettenberger via LSU Reveille

Earlier today I wrote about watching LSU’s win over Texas A&M at Legends Sports Bar in Manhattan. It was a pins and needles affair. Then again, that’s the way all the Tigers’ SEC games are this season.

Here are five thoughts on LSU’s win over Texas A&M:

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Filed Under: College football, Football, LSU, Sports Tagged With: , , ,

Cajun Tomato’s NYC 100: “Legends Sports Bar”

October 21, 2012 By 1 Comment

Legends via Hipstamatic

This is the 11th installment of Cajun Tomato’s NYC 100, a daily series chronicling my experiences and observations as a new New Yorker.

Here’s one thing I’ve learned in life: You can take the boy out of south Louisiana but you can’t take the LSU fan out of the boy. That was true in Oregon amid rabid Ducks fans, and it remains so in New York City.

On Saturday afternoon I entered Legends Sports Bar in Manhattan during halftime of LSU’s football contest with Texas A&M. Yes, halftime. I overslept, failing to take into account the subway’s relative weekend sloth. Rookie mistake, I know.

Upon arrival at Legends Sports Bar, I heard Big Tymers’ NOLA rap anthem, “Get Your Roll On”, belting from the venue’s speakers and observed dozens of purple and gold-clad Tigers fans, many of whom were clutching a beer. Behind the bar there were purple and gold signs with the years 1958, 2003, and 2007, representing LSU’s three national championships. It all felt authentic.

And this was just halftime.

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Filed Under: Cajun Tomato's NYC 100, College football, Football, LSU, NYC, Sports Tagged With: , , ,

With Mathieu’s Dismissal, Cornerback U Faces Depth Shortage Entering 2012

August 12, 2012 By Leave a Comment

So long, Honey Badger!

For two years, Tyrann Mathieu played the game of college football at a kamikaze speed and intensity that recalled a peewee football player instructed to “get the ball” and nothing more. Mathieu’s ability to reek havoc on opponents – whether through his precocious ability to force fumbles or return punts – propelled LSU to a 13-0 regular season record last season and earned him a spot as a Heisman Trophy finalist.

News of Mathieu’s dismissal from LSU on Friday morning came with the same type of full steam, out of nowhere force that he himself had displayed on the field so often. LSU coach Les Miles announced Mathieu had violated team rules – read: Mathieu failed a third drug test – and thus would no longer play in Purple and Gold. Opposing fans cheered with glee while the mood was a bit more subdued, as you would imagine, from Tiger fans.

Mathieu’s departure leaves a massive hole for the Tigers – one I will examine in a moment – but Miles’s teams have performed superbly in the past when faced with adversity. In 2007, LSU won the BCS National Championship after starting QB Ryan Perrilloux’s dismissal before the season. Last season, Mathieu helped the team reach the BCS National Championship despite starting the season without suspended QB Jordan Jefferson.

Mathieu’s departure leaves the Tigers’ corner position lacking in both experience and depth – a surprising development for a team that has earned the nickname Cornerback U with back-to-back Jim Thorpe Award winners recognizing the nation’s top defensive back. Three of LSU’s top four cornerbacks from 2011 are gone, with only junior Tharold Simon remaining.

With this shortage in mind, I used Rivals.com to look at LSU’s cornerback recruits from 2008-2012 to highlight how the program arrived at its current predicament – i.e., needing to rely on freshman cornerbacks to make its second straight BCS National Championship Game appearance.

NOTE: All star and overall position rankings below are from Rivals.

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Filed Under: College football, LSU, Sports Tagged With: , , , ,

Most Viewed Posts (1st Quarter 2012 Edition)

March 31, 2012 By 1 Comment

King Midas Pujol

This is my 60th post of 2012. Don’t blow out the candles just yet. I set an unofficial goal for myself to post 365 times this year. I am slightly behind. I am averaging two posts every three days.

I am also averaging more than 100 page views per day this year. Not bad. The redhead in me wants more, more, MORE!!! I’ll lower my voice now.

Here are my five most viewed posts through the first three months of 2012. Guidos, meth cooks, and quarterbacks head the list. A special shout out to my friend, Jordy Pujol, who has the Midas touch when it comes to blogging. PS: The publication date is in parentheses. Interestingly, four of the five were written in January.

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Filed Under: Breaking Bad, College football, Dig This Tomato, Yo!, Live Music, LSU, Music, Sports, Television Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Adventures In Bandwagon Fandom

March 22, 2012 By 1 Comment

MJ made bandwagon fans of us all.

I idolized Michael Jordan growing up. He was my superhero. As such, his team, the Chicago Bulls, became my favorite NBA club, even though I lived 1,500 miles south of the Windy City.

I gleefully hopped aboard the Bulls bandwagon, just as it was overflowing with fans from across the globe. When Jordan left the team in 1998, after winning his sixth NBA title, I conveniently hopped off.

Look up the term bandwagon fan in the dictionary and you will see my 8-year-old ginger face staring in wonder at Jordan on the TV.

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Filed Under: LSU, Saints, Sports Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Cajun Tomato’s Top Posts Of January 2012

February 1, 2012 By Leave a Comment

The Mighty Pacific

My January in a nutshell: LSU lost, “Jersey Shore” returned, and I bought Coachella tickets. Oh, and I survived Snowpocalypse 2012 and watched truckloads of “Dexter” episodes.

Yep, that’s it. I am looking forward to spring. I want it to be T-Shirt Time RIGHT. THIS. SECOND!

Here are my five top posts for January 2012. Shoutout to Jordy Pujol, the author of my No. 1 post of this month.

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Filed Under: Breaking Bad, Dig This Tomato, Yo!, LSU, Music, Television Tagged With: , , , , ,

Despite Recent Events, Sky Not Falling On LSU Football

January 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Les will have plenty to cheer in 2012

From Eugene, Ore., to Gainesville, Fla., the signatures of young men will provide college football fanbases with jolts of excitement and barrels of optimism Wednesday.

Yet, I am sure there are some LSU football fans who are looking forward to Thursday. Yes, Thursday — the day after National Signing Day — so they can shift their full attention to the 2012 season.

The excitement surrounding Wednesday has been tempered a bit in Baton Rouge since five-star safety Landon Collins spurned his hometown team for Alabama and five-star quarterback Gunner Kiel decommitted from LSU in favor of Notre Dame.

Factor in LSU’s 21-0 loss to Alabama in the BCS National Championship Game three weeks ago, and some would have you believe the sky is falling in Baton Rouge.

Which is laughable.

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Filed Under: College football, Football, LSU, Sports Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Cajun Tomato’s Most Viewed Posts Jan. 8-15, 2012

January 16, 2012 By Leave a Comment

That distant, yet clear sound you hear is me screaming “ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!” at the top of my lungs. There is no end in sight to my furor. Hell, the next football season is eight months away. I might yell my lungs out. I might not. We shall see. Oh! The intrigue!

The ironic thing about LSU and the Saints each wrapping their seasons in disappointing, yet wildly different fashions is not that I am still smarting from their losses days later. It is that they, in turn, sparked my highest page view count in the history of this blog. For that, I owe a large debt of gratitude to my friend, Jordy Pujol.

Here were the five most viewed posts for Jan. 8-15:
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Filed Under: College football, Dig This Tomato, Yo!, Football, LSU, Music, Saints, Sports, Television Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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