Syracuse (3-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast) is set to take on No. 8 Louisiana State (2-0, 2-0 Southeastern) at noon in the Carrier Dome in the Orange’s most anticipated matchup of the season. Follow along with SU-LSU coverage here or on Twitter @DOSports.

To learn more about the Tigers, The Daily Orange spoke with Ross Dellenger, an LSU beat writer for The Advocate.

The Daily Orange: Is it even possible to stop Heisman hopeful running back Leonard Fournette?

Ross Dellenger: Well, (LSU head coach) Les Miles was asked about it on a teleconference on Wednesday and said the key to slowing him down is basically for the opponent’s offense to keep the ball, so for him to be on the sideline. And there’s probably a little truth to that … I don’t know if the best defense in the nation could hold down Leonard Fournette under 70 or 80 yards. Maybe they hold him to 100 or something … Even if they put eight, nine, even 10 in the box, they found a way to at least get Leonard Fournette a little bit of space and that’s really all he needs.

The D.O.: What have you learned about quarterback Brandon Harris after winning the starting job in training camp?

R.D.: We don’t know too much about him, but through two games this year, it’s pretty clear the coaches are easing him along. He’s only completed 21 passes of 31 attempts, so he’s averaging about 15 attempts per game. They’re handing the ball off a lot and more so than using Brandon’s arm, they have really used Brandon’s feet. He almost has as many rushing yards, 114, as as many passing yards, 145. So we all kind of know how talented he is and in some nonconference games last year, he showed his arm, he’s really got a rocket, he’s kind of a gunslinger … He’s got the talent but the coaches have been easing him in. I think this could be the game, against Syracuse, when they might let him throw downfield.

The D.O.: LSU’s leading tackler, Deion Jones, is suspended for the first half for targeting last week. How big of a factor will that have on the game?

R.D.: He’s so fast and he has that reckless abandon, he’ll hit anybody. It is going to be tough to replace somebody like him in the first half … They don’t sub very often. (LSU’s starting linebackers) get about 95 percent of the snaps in the game. So bringing somebody else in, you’re looking at somebody who doesn’t have a ton of experience, specifically this year through the first two games … That’s something that if I’m Syracuse, I’m going to exploit. Deion is the guy that runs from sideline to sideline, so if you can get to the edges against a backup in the game, you probably should take advantage of it.

The D.O.: Who else should Syracuse fans have on their radar?

R.D.: There’s another running back, his name’s Derrius Guice. He’s a true freshman, he was a five-star (four-star) guy according to most recruiting services. So he’s really talented. He had (six) carries for (55) yards and two of the carries included about five broken tackles. So he’s a guy you’re going to see a lot, especially because if the game does get out of hand, they’ll probably sit Leonard and he’ll probably be the guy.

The D.O.: What’s the one area that Syracuse would have to capitalize on to have a chance?

R.D.: Certainly in the first half, if you don’t have your lead tackler, that’s something to take advantage of. Deion Jones covers a lot, the slot guy a lot, sometimes a fourth wide receiver. The best thing to do, especially against an LSU defense without Deion, is to spread them out with three-, four-, five-receiver sets and throw the ball and trying to get matchups with that backup weak-side linebacker in the game. I think that’s what Syracuse has to do. If they’re able to move the ball, keep Leonard Fournette off the field … and exploit LSU not having its leading tackler in the first half, that’s the way to go.

Published on September 24, 2015 at 5:26 pm

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