Virtual Report Card: Handing out grades in the LSU victory

After coming out very sluggish against McNeese last week, the LSU Tigers came out swinging in week three. The Tigers opened up a 35-7 lead at the half and that was all she wrote for this game.

The offense scored on four first-half possessions, and the defense added one of their own. That would be all they would need in this game as the defense was swarming to the ball and making life difficult on Central Michigan.

A look at the top offensive and defensive grades from Pro Football Focus:

Top Offensive Grades

Top Defensive Grades

Now to hand out the virtual grades for the game, here is how we break down the grades for each position group after the win.

Quarterback

Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

Grade: A

Overall it was a really good performance from the starting quarterback Max Johnson. In this game, he was efficient and even took shots down the field. Johnson completed 74.3% of his passes and just one mistake with the interception returned for a touchdown in the third quarter. It was a start that he can build off of.

Running Backs

(Sean Gardner/Getty Images)

Grade: C+

It was a pretty forgettable night for the group unless your name was Corey Kiner. Much as he did a week ago, the freshman came in late and provided a spark. Kiner averaged 6.2 yards per carry with a touchdown on 12 touches. It might be time to see how Kiner does as the starting running back. Ty Davis-Price finished with four yards on six attempts.

Wide Receivers

(Sean Gardner/Getty Images)

Grade: A+

We are giving the wide receivers a perfect grade for this performance. Of the 400 yards receiving in this game, 161 came after the catch. Deion Smith and Jack Bech showed off their hands with great catches and Kayshon Boutte didn't have to do much. Seven different receivers caught passes in this game, overall the depth looks good at the position despite not having Trey Palmer. Smith led the way with five receptions for 135 yards and two touchdowns.

Offensive Line

Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

Grade: B+

The offensive line did their job on Saturday night keeping Max Johnson upright in the pocket. He would feel pressure on seven dropbacks, was hurried six times, and hit once. Outside of that, you couldn't ask for more from the unit. Their inability to run the ball showed up once again leaving running backs to create on their own. Xavier Hill struggled some but that was expected for the freshman, the team hopes to have Cam Wire back this week.

Defensive Line

(Sean Gardner/Getty Images)

Grade: A

The defensive front was relentless against the Central Michigan offensive line. They completely shut down Lew Nichols III, who ran for over 100 yards against Missouri. He finished with 18 yards on 12 carries. CMU was only able to muster 1.8 yards per attempt. Quarterback Jacob Sirmon was sacked a total of five times in the game. BJ Ojulari led the way with 2.5. Jaquelin Roy, Desmond Little, and Jacobian Guillory each added 0.5. Jarell Cherry added the other sack.

Linebackers

Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

Grade: A-

One major positive sign for the defense was how the linebackers were absolutely swarming to the ball. Damone Clark, Micah Baskerville, and Bugg Strong each tallied six tackles each. More importantly, the team was in the backfield all night with 15 TFLs. They will need more of this performance moving forward into SEC play.

Secondary

(AP Photo/Derick Hingle)

Grade: A-

The secondary looked ready to come and bring the physicality early on. Derek Stingley Jr sent a message early on as he forced a fumble with a monster hit, it allowed Andre Anthony to score on the return. Major Burns came up with an interception later in the game. They did have a blown coverage play where Central Michigan scored on a 78-yard pass but overall it was a solid performance. Something they need to clean up this week with Mike Leach's offense looming on Saturday.

1

1