Baton Rouge - There were a lot of unwanted season-highs (or worsts) allowed by the LSU defense Saturday against the dynamic Texas A&M offense. Plays (94). Total yards (410). First downs (26). Passing yards (276).
As tough as all of those stats might be to stomach, one number the Tigers used to trump all those was also a season-high.
Turnovers forced (5).
That number, combined with some effective in-game adjustments and tweaks, was a major reason why and how No. 6-ranked LSU (7-1, 3-1 SEC) rallied to dust the 18th-ranked Aggies 24-19.
"We were on our heels a little bit early because they came out and ran some stuff we weren't prepared for," Tigers safety Eric Reid said. "We knew we had to do something to get momentum and that's when we made some big plays.
"We got some key turnovers and put some points on the board."
Indeed, three of the Aggies' giveaways led to LSU touchdowns and the other two proved to be pivotal as well.
1. Jalen Collins intercepts Johnny Manziel (2nd quarter)
A&M had good field position after Brad Wing's worst punt of the day and was poised to pad a 12-0 lead. This series might've been where the turnaround began, as Barkevious Mingo pressured Manziel into a throw-away on first down, linebacker Lamin Barrow stuffed Ben Malena for a 1-yard loss on second and a switch in pass coverage from man to zone triggered a bad Manziel pass off his back foot that Collins snared.
With the drive kept alive by a pass interference on the Aggies and a fourth-down conversion, LSU pieced together a seven-play, 58-yard touchdown drive that closed the gap to 12-7.
2. Ronald Martin forces a fumble and Barrow recovers (2nd quarter)
The Aggies were facing a second-and-5 because of an offsides penalty and sent Malena off left tackle. He got most of the yards he needed for a first down and was battling for the first down when Martin wrapped him up and yanked the ball free. Barrow won the scrum at the bottom of a pile of humanity to give the Tigers possession at the A&M 41-yard-line.
It was a struggle, but LSU's offense again capitalized when Zach Mettenberger lofted a 29-yard TD pass to Kadron Boone on a slant-and-go route right before halftime.
3. An on-target pass to Mike Evans clangs off his hands and LSU linebacker Kevin Minter snares the carom for an interception (3rd quarter).
Right when the Aggies had seemed to rediscover their offensive rhythm with a pair of first down to fuel a promising drive, Evans made a freshman mistake that affected both teams. On a quick slant, Evans split two defenders and had an open field in front of for a potential huge gain. But he didn't snatch the bullet pass from Manziel and the drive was snuffed out.
The Tigers didn't score off the take-away when a head-scratching series of play calls led to a failed 54-yard field-goal attempt after a penalty, but losing the ball on the interception seemed to take the aggressiveness out of the Aggies' play calling in the next few series.
4. Tharold Simon, after an up-and-down day, delivered a huge play when he jumped a route and yanked a Manziel pass in on the sideline just past midfield (4th quarter).
LSU wasted no time converting, as Jeremy Hill took a simple handoff on the right and plowed through a massive hole on the way to a 47-yard touchdown run.
5. Mingo jumped on a loose ball to slam the door after A&M's dizzying seven-lateral final play (4th quarter).
While the last turnover might've seemed inconsequential, finally coming up with the ball was huge for the Tigers considering the damage the Aggies' skill-position players were capable of -- including Manziel had he gotten the ball back in his hands one last time.
The final tally was 21 LSU points off the five turnovers in a game when the Tigers' offense again struggled to create its own opportunities.
And for A&M, those 21 points proved to be too steep a hurdle to overcome on a day when the LSU's defense clamped down after a difficult beginning.
"Against a very talented team, the margin of error is really, really small," Aggies coach Kevin Sumlin said.
Added A&M receiver Uzoma Nwachukwu, "If you turn the ball over that many times, you're going to get beat."
The 5-0 turnover margin was LSU's best this season and marked the first time the Tigers have won that battle 5-0 since a 51-0 romp past ULM in 2010.
The last time LSU forced five turnovers against an SEC foe was earlier in 2010 when Mississippi State lost the ball that much in a 29-7 loss.
And the last time the Tigers had a bigger turnover margin was the 2007 season opener when they forced seven turnovers (six interceptions) and didn't lose the ball in a 45-0 rout at State.
National recognition
After another solid day to anchor the LSU defense, middle linebacker Kevin Minter was named the Walter Camp Defensive Player of the Week on Sunday.
The national award comes after Minter recorded 12 tackles, two quarterback hurries, a sack and an interception as the Tigers' defense adjusted after a wobbly start against Texas A&M and keyed a 24-19 victory at Kyle Field.
Penalty problems
LSU was flagged a season-high 13 times for a season-worst 103 yards, the Tigers' third game of the season with at least 10 penalties.
Among the penalties were six on the defense; three that gave the Aggies first downs and three offsides calls.
LSU wasn't alone in the penalty department, though.
A week after being called for 19 penalties for 165 yards, A&M was only called for six penalties. But one wiped out a first-quarter touchdown and the other was the pass interference call that prolonged LSU's first touchdown drive of the day.
The first was a text-book chop block when left tackle Luke Joeckel came in for a cut block on Eric Reid when left guard Jarvis Harrison already had him engaged.
The PI was a borderline call on Toney Hurd against Jarvis Landry, but television replays clearly show Hurd had a hand on the receiver's hip/back when the ball arrived.
Hidden hero
Collins' splashiest play was the easily noticed second-quarter interception, but he came through even bigger on special teams in the fourth period.
Right after Drew Alleman connected on a 28-yard field goal for a 17-12 LSU lead with 8:35 left in the game, Trey Williams wiggled through seam on the ensuing kickoff and bolted 76 yards. Collins came from the opposite side of the field, took a great angle and saved the touchdown when he dragged Williams down at the 16-yard-line.
The Aggies gained only 2 yards on three plays and Taylor Bertholet shanked a 31-yard field goal.
Holding steady
LSU stayed at No. 6 in all four polls/rankings released Sunday.
The AP and USA Today coaches' polls pegged the Tigers No. 6, and the Harris Poll and BCS standings -- two key elements in how the BCS bowl participants are selected - also had LSU in the sixth spot.
Hidden meaning?
As vanilla as LSU's offensive play-calling can be at times, there was one stretch Saturday that, at first glance, seemed exceptionally conservative.
Following Manziel's second interception, the Tigers were on the move with a pair of first downs that moved the ball from the LSU 40 to the Aggies' 37. From there, LSU ran three straight plays to the right side, nothing to the outside or with any hint of misdirection.
Those three plays netted minimal gains and got the Tigers to the 32 facing fourth-and-5. As Alleman set up for a field goal, the starting of backfield of Spencer Ware and J.C. Copeland remained on the field, perhaps a sign that a fake field-goal try was upcoming.
However, Copeland was the 12th player on the field, causing a substitution infraction and Alleman was forced to try a 54-yard kick that he missed wide right.
Moving the chains
- With 12 tackles, Minter notched his second game in the last three with double-digit tackle totals. He has 41 stops in the last three games and 75 this season, one fewer than Reid and Tyrann Mathieu had last season to lead the team.?
- Saturday's crowd of 87,429 was the first largest in Kyle Field history.
- Hill's long run vaulted him past 100 yards for the second week in a row, making him the first LSU freshman to do that since Justin Vincent notched four in a row over the century mark in 2003.?
With 251 yards in the last two games, Hill is up to 322 yards, making him the third Tigers' back above 300 this season - Kenny Hilliard leads the team with 420 yards and Ford is second with 357.?
Hill has also not been stopped for a negative rush in 48 attempts this season and ranks second to Hilliard with five rushing TDs.
- Ford's performance was lost in the shuffle of Hill's day, but the LSU junior delivered the best day of his season with 78 rushing yards on 11 carries.
- Third down was again vexing for the LSU offense. The Tigers were 2-for-16 against the Aggies and are now 7-for-39 (17.9%) on third down in three SEC road games. LSU converted two fourth downs in two chances Saturday.
- Boone hauled in a career-high four passes for 49 yards, including his team-high fourth TD reception. Odell Beckham Jr. also snagged four throws for 35 yards, marking just the second time this season LSU has had two players with four or more grabs in the same game this season - the first time in SEC play.
- Manziel completed 11-of-19 passes for 115 yards in the first quarter and Ben Malena rushed for 50. After that, Manziel was 18-of-37 for 161 yards and Malena rushed for only 32 more yards on seven carries.
Source: http://www.nola.com/lsu/index.ssf/2012/10/lsu_notebook_turnovers_play_a.html
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