CRIME: LSU defensive back issued misdemeanor summons, p. 3
SPORTS: Sophomore diver sets another record, p. 5
Reveille The Daily
www.lsureveille.com
Wednesday, September 18, 2013 • Volume 118, Issue 17
GOTTA CATCH ’EM ALL Wide receivers off to hot start TREY LABAT • Sports Contributor
LSU’s passing game is outshining the rushing game through the first three games of the season. Read that sentence again after recovering from hitting the ground. The improved play of junior wide receivers Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry has much to do with the revamped LSU passing attack. In the Tigers’ first three games, Beckham and Landry have combined for 576 receiving yards — 72.2 percent of senior quarterback Zach Mettenberger’s yards on the season. Beckham leads the Tigers in all-purpose yards by a wide margin as well. At 234 yards per game, he’s already accumulated 63 percent of the 1,112 yards he gained overall last season. In the actual receiving portion of the game, Beckham has proven himself to be in the elite category of LSU deep threats of the past. Beckham currently averages 22 yards per catch, the highest of any LSU receiver since 2005 with 20 or more targets in a season. The closest comparison was
CATCHING RATE 2013 RECEPTIONS
64.4%
30.5% OTHERS
69.5%
2012
ODELL BECKHAM JR. JARVIS LANDRY
BECKHAM AND LANDRY
JARVIS LANDRY
ODELL BECKHAM JR.
59.7%
75%
81%
* Catches ÷ Targets
2013
CATCH, see page 11
YARDS PER CATCH JULIO JONES, 2010 RUEBEN RANDLE, 2011
14.7 16.6
ODELL BECKHAM JR., 2013
22 photo by RICHARD REDMANN, graphics by EMILY HERRINGTON / The Daily Reveille
Tigers may have to rely on another receiving option against Auburn Lawrence Barreca Sports Writer
LSU senior quarterback Zach Mettenberger has had an electric start to the 2013 campaign under new offensive coordinator Cam Cameron, passing for 797 yards and nine touchdowns against TCU, UAB and Kent State.
His two primary receivers, juniors Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry, have established themselves as the Tigers’ reliable options, combining for 32 receptions, 576 yards and all nine of Mettenberger’s touchdown passes. But of all the statistics compiled by the Tigers’ offense throughout the first three weeks of the season,
one standout number is 71 percent. Seventy-one percent of Mettenberger’s completions have gone to either of his primary junior receivers, targeting both Beckham and Landry nearly 59 percent of the time. With Southeastern Conference play arriving in Baton Rouge when the Tigers battle Auburn on
Saturday, LSU may have to rely on another option to stay efficient on offense. “It’s really important [to establish a third receiver],” said redshirt freshman wide receiver Travin Dural. “People are going to start trying to take [Beckham and Landry] away eventually, and it may happen in the first game of SEC
play, so it’s very important that our third receiver is ready to step up and make a play.” The Auburn defense has allowed 433.7 yards per play thus far in 2013, but many LSU fans will recall an ugly 12-10 victory in Jordan-Hare Stadium last season. A RECEIVERS, see page 11