College Football

Burrow will start

LSU head coach Ed Orgeron named Ohio State grad transfer Joe Burrow as his starter for the Tigers’ 2018 season opener. The announcement on Monday afternoon came via the release of the team’s depth chart. It does not necessarily mean Burrow is the starter for the season. Just days earlier, LSU head coach Ed Orgeron described the competition as “a very tight race.” Those simple words leave an opening for an early change should play warrant it. Joe Burrow’s work effort, dual threat ability, size, football IQ and abilities gave him the nod.

Burrow and his competitor, Myles Brennan, became the frontrunners when Justin McMillan and Lowell Narcisse transferred out. Brennan was last season’s backup at LSU as was Burrow at Ohio State. Both had storied high school careers.

At OSU, Burrow was 29 of 39 for 287 and 2 TD’s in 10 games as a back-up. Brennan showcased in six games putting up a modest 14 of 24 for 182, a score and two picks.

Now the job is Burrow’s to lose as he faces Miami on the road in Arlington, Texas. Were it not for J.T. Barrett, Joe Burrow would have been the Buckeyes’ starter. Tom Herman, now the University of Texas head coach, was the offensive coordinator at OSU and he wanted Burrow coming out of high school. Dave Biddle of Bucknuts/247 Sports described Joe Burrow as everything you want in a quarterback.

 “I have definitely seen enough of him (Joe Burrow) to know he can handle the pressure of being the starter at a top program like LSU that plays a brutal schedule. He is not someone who gets rattled. LSU fans will absolutely love him based on the way he plays and how he handles adversity when it comes along. This stage will not be too big for him at all — because he was almost the starter at Ohio State, and I have no doubt he would have flourished in that role in Columbus.”

Superlatives abound

The new LSU quarterback has been compared in Ohio football circles to former Buckeye great Art Schlichter. Remember him? A gambling addiction prevented the fourth overall pick of the 1982 draft from being one of football’s greats. Is it possible that Burrows will be synonymous with a Lousiana legend Terry Bradshaw one day?

Michael Thomas, Pro Bowl wide receiver for the New Orleans Saints, spent one season in Columbus with Joe Burrow. In May, when Burrow announced his transfer, Thomas shared these thoughts.

“Joe’s a leader, tough, throws a real catchable pass, moves around the pocket really well, and he’s a winner,” Thomas said at the Best of Preps Bayou dinner in late May. “I pull for LSU unless they play Ohio State. I know a lot of their players, and I know coach Ed Orgeron from his USC days.”

Couldn’t ask for much more from your quarterback. Joe Burrow is an X’s and O’s student of the game. On Sunday, LSU Tigers fans will get a chance to judge for themselves.