Baton Rouge — LSU football coach Ed Orgeron was “very proud” of the Tigers’ performance in Saturday’s 55-3 win over Georgia Southern.
But he and his team know they’ve got a different challenge this week as the Tigers head to Austin to face the No. 9 Texas Longhorns Saturday at 6:30 p.m.
“Obviously, we're going to face a great opponent in Texas this week on the road,” he said. “It's going to be a very good challenge for our football team, but we're going to be up for it.”
The Tigers are coming off one of the best offensive performances they've had under Orgeron. Quarterback Joe Burrow tied the school record for school passing touchdowns in a half and 14 receivers caught a pass.
The defense was also dominant holding the Eagles to 98 yards of total offense.
However, Oregon said the Tigers haven’t gotten to high off the victory as this team has handled the win maturely.
“The way they acted yesterday, was not giddy,” he said. “It was a day off for them. Tell the Truth Monday. They handled the film very well. We had one of our best Monday practices we ever had.
“They know the magnitude of this football game. We're not going to make it bigger than life. We've been in big games before. This is a big game and they know it.”
The Tigers are getting to work preparing for a Texas team that is coming of a 45-14 win against Louisiana Tech. The Longhorns feature a group of players Orgeron spoke very highly of, including quarterback Sam Ehlinger.
“He's a complete football player,” Orgeron said. “He does a lot of things with his feet. He does a great job with his arm. He makes some great decisions. Excellent scheme, similar to us on offense. He knows where to go with the football.”
Orgeron said Texas’ defense will also present challenges as head coach Tom Herman’s unit plays an aggressive style.
“These guys know what they're doing.” he said. “They're good tacklers. They use their speed. I think the strength of their defense is in their linebackers and the DBs. They use them a bunch.”
Oregon particularly said he was interested in seeing how LSU offensive line is able to protect Joe Burrow against the Texas defense.
“I do believe we have the skill and knowledge to get people open and to catch the football, make yards after catch,” he said. “But we do have to protect the quarterback first. This is going to be a challenge for us.”
