Myles Brennan's debut inspires hope about LSU's future
BATON ROUGE, La. — On the cusp of a 10-win season and the chance to secure a bid to play football on New Year’s Day, the most-discussed member of LSU’s football team leading into senior night was sophomore quarterback Myles Brennan, who is destined for a redshirt season.
A 42-10 shredding of a Southland Conference opponent was about reviving the offense, allowing coordinator Steve Ensminger to tinker some play calls and instilling confidence back in Joe Burrow. But it also opened the door for the fan base to get a glimpse into the future beyond 2018.
After Burrow set a new career-high for passing with 307 yards and a pair of touchdowns, the torch was passed to Brennan, making his season debut. The New Orleans native, taking a snap under center for the first time in a calendar year, completed 4-of-6 passes for 65 yards highlighted by a 39-yard catch-and-run to Justin Jefferson, which set up Lanard Fournette’s 3-yard touchdown run with 11 minutes left in the fourth quarter.
More notable than any statistics, Brennan’s return to the field was a confidence builder for the young signal-caller. Coach Ed Orgeron mentioned that there have been opportunities to insert Brennan into games earlier in the season but he hasn’t been healthy. After getting a look at him for three drives to close out LSU’s ninth victory of the season, the coach asked Brennan how he felt.
“It felt good to get hit,” Brennan told Orgeron.
A few bumps and bruises won’t affect Brennan’s redshirt for the 2018 season. He remains the Tigers’ No. 2 option behind Burrow — the only other quarterback on scholarship on the roster — but a key piece in the program’s future.
Despite a short sample size, Burrow advised Brennan to own the moment.
“Myles is always ready to go when his number is called,” Burrow said of his backup. “When we went out there, I told him to run the show. ‘It’s your show,’ and I think he did that.”
By all accounts, it was an inauspicious start. Brennan overthrew Foster Moreau on his first attempt on his first snap under center.
Brennan rebounded with consecutive completions to Fournette and freshman Terrace Marshall Jr. On the ensuing drive, he connected with Jefferson for a 39-yard completion, which set up a late touchdown run from Fournette.
He had to wipe off some rust, Orgeron said after Brennan’s first call to action since 2017 against Texas A&M and his most attempts since the Troy game last September.
“He played well,” Moreau said. “He’s been in that situation before, so I don’t think it was anything new to him. I’m very happy we could see him out there.”
“Myles was slinging it today. I liked what I saw,” safety Grant Delpit added. “I was excited to see him. I think he could play in all the rest of the games. He was slinging it today. A couple good throws, so I was excited for him.
“He always throws the ball well — even his bad throws are hard and on the spot. He can definitely sling the ball pretty well. We see it in practice every week. A couple missed throws, but not too many. He controlled the offense. He can do it. If Joe goes out, I’m confident in Myles.”
It remains unclear the next time No. 15 will be under center for LSU. Next Saturday's tilt in College Station will be for win No. 10 on the season, a pre-season benchmark and a chance to remain in the mix for a New Year’s Six bowl game and, potentially, keeping all hopes for a College Football Playoff bid intact.
A lopsided bowl game against may be Brennan’s next shot at action, but it’s too premature to consider that possibility just yet. The most likely scenario is in the spring as he battles with Burrow.
Until then, Brennan’s four completions, six attempts and three series will leave plenty of intrigue about LSU’s other quarterback, who by all accounts has also won over the locker room and inspired hope about the offense’s future.
“I think he did a great job, a tremendous job,” Fournette said. “I definitely expect a lot from him and I know he expects a lot from himself. He’s definitely someone to keep an eye on in the future.”