Tigers say QB Jefferson quietly adjusting Freshman has been off limits to the media Wednesday, December 17, 2008 By James Varney BATON ROUGE -- Like a stage director, LSU freshman quarterback Jordan Jefferson's is a voice most often heard off stage these days. Although Jefferson will start for the Tigers (7-5) in the Chick-fil-A Bowl on Dec. 31, just as he started the team's last regular-season game at Arkansas, he remains off limits to the media. There is a chance Jefferson will speak with reporters sometime after the team reaches Atlanta on Christmas Day, but for now LSU goes through preparations with the quarterback something of a mystery. Those preparations continued down the grueling path Tuesday, as Coach Les Miles kept the team going well past the practice's scheduled 6 p.m. end. That marks the second consecutive day Miles has pushed the intensity level, and several players have praised the heightened tempo and physicality of the team's preparations for No. 14 Georgia Tech (9-3). On Monday, Miles said the sort of practice LSU is holding at the moment is not one that gives Jefferson's leadership qualities full rein. In part because Georgia Tech employs a rarely seen triple option offensive attack that requires new game planning, and in part because usually some younger players who might figure into LSU's plans for 2009 generally get more reps during bowl practices, but Jefferson has not yet emerged as the Tigers unquestioned leader, according to Miles. But junior tailback Charles Scott, for one, said Jefferson is embracing his role. One year removed from taking an undefeated Destrehan High School team to the state 5A championship, Jefferson finds himself the signal caller for LSU as the team tries to put a positive finish on what everyone connected to the program concedes has been an unexpectedly disappointing season. "We're starting to look a lot better in practice, you can feel the offense clicking, we're coming along," Scott said. "(Jefferson) is doing great, he's taking it in stride. He's coming out, learning it, he's looking real good." It's not as if the team has to completely switch gears, Scott noted. When mobile sophomore Andrew Hatch was the starter, LSU ran many of the same plays it does with Jefferson. it was only when the team had to rely almost exclusively on redshirt freshman Jarrett Lee that the quarterback functioned almost exclusively as a passer. "Now, with Jordan in, we can do key runs or pass so it's not a different offense at all," Scott said. "When he first got in, it was kind of slow because he wasn't really sure if he could tell a senior to hurry up and get on the line. But now he's taken control of the huddle and he's like, 'let's go, let's go, let's go,' and that's a good sign." While Jefferson will be the featured quarterback in the bowl it is not clear if LSU will rely on him exclusively. Lee said Monday he has largely recovered from the ankle injury that felled him in the Ole Miss game and he will be suited up and good to go against Georgia Tech. Hatch has not practiced this week, Miles said, and his status for the bowl game remains uncertain. Although LSU's travails at quarterback were the most glaring hole in the 2008 offense, Scott said there was plenty of blame to go around. "Early on we weren't that consistent and it just kind of got worse as we went on," he said. "The last few games, the offense just played terrible. Not one guy, we all hit a wall. It was everybody. We were all messing up at different times." Furthermore, Scott dismissed the notion LSU would have fared better if junior Ryan Perrilloux, the heralded high school quarterback, had not been dismissed from the team before the season. In fact, Scott argued, the opposite is true -- that the team benefited by jettisoning the uncertainty that surrounded Perrilloux. "He's not here, it didn't happen, so who's to say?" Scott said when asked about the impact of Perrilloux's departure. "I think one of the good things about him leaving is we knew the quarterback was going to be there. We didn't have to worry about 'was he going to be here, was he going to be in trouble the next day?' That was one of the securities we had when he left." He may be starting to earn some respect and learn his place. His play on the field will have to back up his attitude though.:thumb:
good for JJ! i for one am a guy who thinks a mobile college qb gives you so many options. it'll be interesting to see if JJ really steps up in spring and summer, and then what RS's role would be. it's got to be hard for a guy who went to prom 6 months ago to order around seniors and other upperclassman. but that's the qb role and it seems JJ's figuring that out. i know one thing, JJ at qb has got make make crowton a little happier.
Great article. Thanks. Sounds like a young man with a lot of confidence. And that's crucial in a QB's development.
good for him. Getting authoritative and confident will go a long ways to making him the leader this team needds during a game.
"He's not here, it didn't happen, so who's to say?" Someone needs to quote this every time Perrilloux's name is ever mentioned by anyone in connection to LSU ever again.
