BATON ROUGE – With final exams for the fall semester over, LSU went back to work on Monday as the 20th-ranked Tigers held their first bowl practice here at the Charles McClendon Practice Facility.
LSU will play in a bowl game for the 16th straight year on Dec. 29 when the Tigers face Texas Tech in the AdvoCare Texas Bowl at NRG Stadium in Houston. Kickoff for the first meeting between LSU and Texas Tech since 1957 is set for 8 p.m. on ESPN.
LSU brings an 8-3 overall mark into the Texas Bowl, while the Red Raiders are 7-5. LSU leads the overall series with Texas Tech, 2-0, with both games coming in the 1950s.
“It was a nice practice,” LSU coach Les Miles said following the workout. “The weather was great and it was a nice day to get a lot of work done. It was mostly good versus good, but we did practice some things that we will be doing against our opponent.”
Miles said the Tigers were going to use the early part of bowl practice with emphasis on “improving our team.”
Miles noted that as part of LSU’s bowl practice regiment, a portion of each workout will be used for what he calls “a young guys go”, which is when the freshmen and sophomores who don’t see much game action are put through an abbreviated scrimmage.
“This is one way that we improve our team,” Miles said. “We try to make the most out of every time we step of the field and this allows some of our younger guys a chance at some additional game-like reps. It’s good for them and it’s good for us as coaches as a way to evaluate.”
Miles said that another area of emphasis for the Tigers during bowl practice is that of the passing game. Miles said he hopes to use the practices leading up to the bowl game as a way to continue to develop sophomore quarterback Brandon Harris. Harris, who is in his first year as a starter, threw for 1,904 yards and 12 touchdowns in leading LSU to an 8-3 mark this season.
“We throw the ball during practice all the time, but we want specifically to have an efficient passing game,” Miles said. “We need more completions and more yards. I think we got a nice start to the game plan. Coach Cam (Cameron) has us heading in the right direction.”
“I think Brandon has had a great attitude heading into the bowl practice. In other words, his personal necessity to throw better and be more accurate is what he is working on. It looks pretty good from here. He has the right attitude and is certainly heading in the right direction.”
The Tigers will practice again on Tuesday and Wednesday followed by a light workout on Thursday and a walk-through on Friday.