Tiger Territory
LSU's Orgeron steals show at TD Club of Houston
Matt Malatesta
May 4, 2018, 3:54 pm
Orgeron was candid about several subjects and had great anecdotal tales. Vype
The LSU Road Tour made a stop in Houston on Wednesday at the TD Club of Houston, the school's top alumni group outside the state of Louisiana.
Coach Ed Orgeron stole the show with his home-spun personality that resonates with high school recruits across the country.
LSU talked about his big plans for local athletes Austin Deculus (Cy-Fair), K'Lavon Chaisson (North Shore), Mannie Netherly (Crosby), Grant Delpit (Lamar), Eric Monroe (North Shore) and Dominic Livingston (Aldine Davis).
Orgeron brought new offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger to talk offense and athletic director Joe Alleva to give an update on the new facilities.
But it was Orgeron who was candid about several subjects and had great anecdotal tales.
"I went on like 18 home recruiting visits last year and had 18 different gumbos," he said. "They were all different, but I couldn't turn any of them down."
When asked about new signee Dominic Livingston?
"I visited Dominic Livingston (Aldine Davis) on campus and asked what he was weighing these days?" he laughed. "He said 360-380 pounds. That's a big difference. He said he didn't have a scale that would record that much. Trust me, LSU does."
The offense was a topic and he assured fans that he knows what a tight end is and where the middle of the field is. He's heard the complaints about the offense not using either.
LSU is heavily recruiting the Houston area as well. Their biggest target is St. Pius X QB Grant Gunnell. He couldn't talk specifics about players, but did say Houston is a huge target for his program.
"We consider Houston as in-state recruiting," he said. "We've been fortunate here."
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The Houston Texans have a big challenge in store as they look to start the season with a win against the Colts this Sunday. When these two teams met in Week 2 last year, the Colts dominated the Texans, despite losing their QB Anthony Richardson to a concussion after the first quarter.
Keeping Richardson contained on Sunday will go a long way in increasing the Texans' chances of coming home with a win. The Texans defense will have their hands full containing the Colts backs and tight ends in the passing game.
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Houston's D allowed only four carries to running backs in 2023 that went for 20 or more yards. Two of which were to Taylor in the final game of the regular season.
Finally, DeMeco Ryans and company have to find a way to get pressure on the QB. They only had one QB hit and zero sacks on Richardson and Garner Minshew the first time they faced off last year.
On offense, the Texans have two big x-factors to watch for on Sunday. The offensive line that suited up to play the Colts in Week 2 last season is completely different from this year.
The o-line was ravaged with injuries to start the 2023 campaign, so we expect a big jump in productivity in the trenches this year.
Another big addition in 2024 is the presence of running back Joe Mixon. The running game only produced 2 yards per rush in Week 2 against Indy last year, so there's clearly room for improvement.
Be sure to watch the video above for our in-depth preview of Texans-Colts!
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