Opinion: How LSU shut up Kirk Herbstreit behind a new motto
![Portrait of Blake Toppmeyer](https://cdn.statically.io/img/www.usatoday.com/gcdn/presto/2019/07/11/PKNS/eb011f38-aa64-47d5-971f-2c78b4d3645e-footballpromo0710_13.jpg?crop=1596,1596,x826,y277&width=48&height=48&format=pjpg&auto=webp)
BATON ROUGE, La. â Among Ed Orgeron and LSU footballâs many critics this season has been the man who wields college footballâs loudest megaphone.
Twice this season, ESPNâs Kirk Herbstreit has eviscerated LSU on âCollege GameDayâ while questioning the Tigersâ heart and effort.
âI see guys that quit,â Herbstreit said of LSU earlier this month. âI see guys that donât want to play for the LSU brand.â
There was no quit in the Tigers on Saturday. There was a spirited effort, a 49-42 upset of No. 17 Florida and a performance that silenced Herbstreit.
âGlad you shut me up,â Herbstreit tweeted after LSUâs victory, while admitting he didnât see this upset coming.
LSU quarterback Max Johnson said the Tigersâ performance reflects what you should expect from this team the rest of the way.
âI just think thatâs just kind of our motto now: Just fight. Fight, fight, fight,â Johnson said. âI think thatâs what our guys have done this week. Weâve kept silent. Weâve kept our heads down and worked throughout the week, and it showed Saturday.â
Effort alone wonât save Orgeronâs job or this LSU season, but itâs a helpful start.
LSU (4-3, 2-2 SEC) looked like a rejuvenated bunch, evidenced in part by 321 rushing yards. Tyrion Davis-Price broke the school record with 287 behind an offensive line that, in a weekâs time, went from a weakness to a wrecking crew.
But effort doesnât solve the fact that LSUâs defense is riddled with injuries or that top offensive weapon Kayshon Boutte is out for the year with an ankle injury.
It doesnât erase losses to UCLA, Auburn and Kentucky, and it doesnât make the remaining schedule any easier.
LSU can play just as hard as it did Saturday and still finish with a .500 record. And that would spell doom for Orgeronâs coaching tenure.
Of course, if LSUâs offensive line performs as well as it did Saturday, the Tigers at least have a chance in every game remaining, a five-game stretch that includes matchups against ranked foes Ole Miss, Alabama, Arkansas and Texas A&M.
Winning two from that four-pack of games probably wonât be enough to save Orgeronâs job. More likely, he needs to win three of the four SEC games remaining.
âWeâre going to fight,â Orgeron said. âWeâre going to fight the rest of the season.â
Credit LSUâs coaching staff for outwitting Floridaâs Dan Mullen.
In response to Boutteâs injury, LSU committed more intensely to its running game and, at times, deployed six offensive linemen, with Garrett Dellinger joining the mix as an extra offensive tackle.
âIt really helped us out,â Orgeron said. âWe got more physical during the game, and it helped our run game out.â
Orgeron trusted his offensive coordinator, Jake Peetz, in a crucial situation.
Facing fourth-and-1 at Floridaâs 1 in the fourth quarter, Peetz asked Orgeron whether he wanted a run play.
Orgeron told Peetz to call what he wanted.
Peetz dialed up a play-action pass.
Johnson remained calm under pressure and made a difficult throw across his body to an open Jaray Jenkins for the decisive touchdown with 3:30 remaining.
âMax did a great job avoiding the pressure,â Orgeron said. âIt could have went the other way, but Max made a great play.â
Johnson made a play that helped quiet LSUâs critics, for the moment, at least.
Blake Toppmeyer is an SEC Columnist for the USA TODAY Network. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @btoppmeyer.