There’s no pressure on LSU quarterbacks Andrew Hatch or Jarrett Lee. Nope, hardly any. After all, one of these guys only has to replace former super-recruit and SEC title game MVP Ryan Perrilloux, as well as solid starter Matt Flynn, and try and lead the Tigers to back-to-back national championships in a football-mad state.
Other than that …
Perrilloux was dismissed from the team after numerous transgressions, leaving the competition between a walk-on in Hatch and a redshirt freshman in Lee.
Hatch, a redshirt junior, committed to BYU when current LSU offensive coordinator Gary Crowton was the Cougars’ coach. Hatch later signed with Harvard and played junior varsity football there, but he injured his knee while playing soccer during a Mormon mission in Chile. But largely because of Crowton, he walked on at LSU last year; he went 1-of-2 for 9 yards and rushed four times for 27 yards last season.
Lee signed with LSU as a four-star prospect in the 2007 class. He threw for 5,909 yards and 68 touchdowns in his final two high school seasons in Brenham, Texas. Lee was 7-of-13 for 181 yards and two touchdowns in the spring game, while Hatch was 13-of-17 for 184 yards and two touchdowns.
“We’re fortunate that the two guys that took all the snaps in the spring will be the guys that will pick up all the slack,” coach Les Miles said. “I think Andrew Hatch has had a very good spring, and I think Jarrett Lee has had a real strong spring.”
Lee, the more physically gifted of the two, reportedly is the leader in the race heading into camp, but that could certainly change and both figure to see minutes. In fact, freshman Jordan Jefferson could even see time.
“I think we’re going to be just fine at quarterback,” Miles said. “They’re still learning, still adjusting, but I feel comfortable. We have what I feel is a pretty good nucleus of talent around them.”
Yes, that nucleus has plenty of talent: two NFL-caliber wideouts in Brandon LaFell and Demetrius Byrd, one of the best offensive lines in the country that includes four returning starters, and a stud corps of running backs. Junior Keiland Williams leads the tailback committee, which also features speedsters Richard Murphy and Trindon Holliday and power runner Charles Scott. Williams ran for 478 yards and six touchdowns last season despite averaging just five carries per game.
Either Lee or Hatch or both will need to be on their game right from the get go, as LSU opens the season Aug. 30 against I-AA national champ Appalachian State, the same App State that upset Michigan last year.
