At least one NFL director of player personnel (he requested anonymity) looks for the Saints to win the NFC South this season. In the following question-and-answer session, he answered questions on why he is looking for a return to the postseason for the Saints:
Q: Why do you think the Saints will be a better team this season? A: Gregg Williams is a terrific defensive coordinator and a brand name in the NFL. He's smart, aggressive, gives you multiple looks and players love an all-out scheme if they are convinced it will work. Gregg makes it work.
Q: What about the defensive players the Saints have added in the last two seasons? A: They have an All-Pro caliber middle linebacker in Jonathan Vilma, two outstanding young defensive starter sin tackle Sedrick Ellis and cornerback Tracy Porter and two solid veteran players in cornerback Randall Gay and defensive end Bobby McCray.
This offseason they added a solid starting cornerback in Jabari Greer, a rent-type player in free safety Darren Sharper and a future All-Pro cornerback in Malcolm Jenkins. We were in no position to draft Jenkins, but he was one of the elite defensive players in the draft and will be a much better player than quite a few of the players picked before him.
Q: How about the Saints offense? A: The No. 1 priority in the league is to protect your quarterback. The Saints won't make a playoff run without Drew Brees, but I believe the key to their 2009 season is the quality of play along the offensive line. Brees is one of the elite players in he game today and he does have a very quick release, but you can't overlook how well this team has protected him him for the past three seasons. Look at the numbers. The Saints have thrown 1,868 times and given up 52 sacks. Those are impressive numbers for an offensive line. They can be an even better group, especially in being a more physical run-blocking unit.
Q: Your thoughts about the Saints running game? A: I think a lot of Sean Payton and he has a very sharp mind for the game, but he just can't get into the trench of having Brees constantly carrying the team without the benefit of a good running game. Payton needs to find a good duo or threesome in the backfield. be smart and overload the running back position to find the right mix. Sean needs to show more confidence in his running game, and that may mean adding a proven veteran at the position.
Q: The Saints have had a lot of turnover in special teams the last couple of years and have had problems with their kicking game. How do they improve?
A: They've had problems in the kicking game since they turned loose John Carney. That was a big mistake. The kid from Oklahoma, Garrett Hartley, was really good once they brought him in in midseason. He connected on every field goal. If he can continue that this season the Saints will be OK. Glenn Pakulak, the punter, is a nomad, and he has consistency problems, but he did a pretty good job punting last season. The rookie, Thomas Morstead, has a strong leg and he showed excellent hang time at SMU. No one can tell you how a rookie can handle the pressure of punting in the NFL, and doing it consistently, but Morstead is a talent.
Q: Your impressions of Reggie Bush? A: Watching Reggie Bush run back those punts against Minnesota last season gave me goosebumps. His speed and ability to hit the open seam at top speed is remarkable. If Bush is on the field for 16 games running back punts, he will make a big difference in two or three games. I was also impressed with Courtney Roby before he was injured as a kickoff returner. He showed an explosive burst up the field and real good vision returning the kickoffs.
The Saints lost the Broncos game because of special teams and a lack of a good short-yardage offense. Bush was all-world that night against the Vikings, but it still wasn't enough because of their kicking game. They lost the Bears game because they couldn't go toe-to-toe with one of the league's better special team units, and their secondary play was awful. Thye need more speed over-all on their coverage units.
I may be wrong, but I believe the play of the offensive line and special teams will be the keys for the Saints this season.
Letter From LSU AD
Dear Tiger Fan,
What a year it has been for LSU Athletics. For the first time in school history, every Tiger sports team participated in NCAA post-season competition. Each and every one of our teams is in position to compete for a national title, and there are very few schools that can make that claim.
There were plenty of great moments along the way: divisional titles in soccer and volleyball … another resounding football bowl victory … an SEC title in men’s basketball … a second straight Super Six appearance in gymnastics … and plenty of individual accomplishments, too. In the end, LSU finished No. 9 in the nation in the Director’s Cup, which measures the overall strength of an institution’s athletic program.
It all culminated with a national championship in baseball, the Tigers’ sixth title and the first since 2000. For two weeks the baseball Tigers took Omaha by storm and created tremendous national publicity for LSU with six appearances on ESPN or ESPN2. Your Tigers represented LSU with pride both on and off the field.
And you, the Tiger fans, broke records as well. Over 1.5 million fans passed through the turnstiles of LSU’s various athletic arenas, the most fans to ever see LSU play at home events in school history. You also traveled in great numbers to road events, buying every ticket available to every road football game and filling the stands in Omaha’s Rosenblatt Stadium to capacity.
Times are good for Tiger Athletics, but we cannot rest on our laurels. Competition is fierce in the Southeastern Conference and we must take this opportunity to get better, to improve our performance on and off the fields of competition.
So as we look forward to the years ahead, we are closely monitoring the impact that state budget cuts to higher education will have on our university, because they will in turn have a direct impact on LSU Athletics.
LSU is winning at the highest level in part because we are able to fund our sports teams at the highest level. Proper funding enables us to pay competitive salaries to the best coaching staff in America, it enables us to maintain some of the finest facilities in the country and it gives us the opportunity to provide the proper athletic and academic support systems for our student-athletes.
As we prepare for this budgetary impact, we will explore ways to cut costs without negatively impacting resources necessary for our student-athletes to win championships and graduate.
We will search for new sources of revenue. For instance, you may have heard that we are working with the city of Baton Rouge to bring an annual country concert and festival to Tiger Stadium each year. We will be innovative in creating new revenue sources.
We will be creative in developing new fans to increase attendance in those sports that are not already sold out and we will entertain fans to keep them coming back.
Ultimately we will have to look at increased costs for tickets and parking at athletic events. We will be sensitive to the increases that have taken place in the last several years, but to remain competitive we will have to adjust ticket and parking prices.
And we will be more proactive than ever in soliciting philanthropic donations. Private fund raising will be more important than ever before and we will identify existing and new donors who can help keep Tiger Athletics among the elite in college sports.
I appreciate the support that you and all of the Tiger Nation gave to the Tigers in 2008-09 in all of our sports. The future is bright and I hope you will be there with us as we continue to compete for SEC and national titles.
We welcome your comments at athletics@lsu.edu. Unfortunately we cannot answer every e-mail we receive, but please be assured they will all be read.
Geaux Tigers!
Joe Alleva
Director of Athletics
Zephyrs
The Zephyrs' Brett Hayes drilled a two-out single into left field in the 13th inning to break a tie game and give the Zephyrs a 4-3 win on Wednesday night at Rosenblatt Stadium.
The win snaps a two- game losing steak for the Zephyrs and improved their extra inning record to 5-5. Omaha drops to 0-9 this season in extra innings.Hayes drilled a solo home run in the second, added a double in the fourth inning and delivered the game winner in the 13th inning.
The Z’s Chris Mobley pitched two scoreless innings to earn the win. Mobley retired the Royals in order in the bottom of the 13th.Michael Ryan had three hits and walked twice for New Orleans. The Z’s led 3-1 until Brian Buchanan smashed a two run home run in the 8th to tie the game. 13 innings is the longest game of the season for New Orleans.Game Notes: The Z’s in extra innings.
The PCL named outfielder Michael Ryan to the All-Star team. The game will be played on July 15 in Portland. The Z’s traded infielder Matt Craig to the Iowa Cubs for future considerations
The Zephyrs continue the quick three- game road trip on Thursday night in Omaha. The Z’s will start RH Rick VandenHurk (3-1, 3.31) against RH Matt Wright (0-5, 7.12) at 7.
SOME HITHER, OTHERS YON: The White Sox are excited about the talents of first-round pick Jared Mitchell. Mitchell's MVP award in the College World Series earned another supporter, San Francisco Chronicle columnist Bruce Jenkins, a longtime baseball writer, wonders whether the Giants should have considered him with the sixth over-all selection. "Mitchell has massive power, blinding speed, a powerful body and some interesting stats, such as leading LSU in in walks and on-base percentage." wrote Jenkins...Eli Manning, on his role with the NY Giants: "You got a quarterback going into his sixth year and...some young receivers. It's my job to be a leader and take control of the offense and the passing game. As a quarterback, you're always going to be a leader, but now I'm one of the older guys on the offense.. You got to make your players better."..
LSU freshman centerfielder Mikie Mahtook on his RBI single in the 11thinning that sealed the first game of the College World Series for LSU: "That's a late Father's Day present. He's with me all the time. When I got up to bat, I knew he was going to do something big for me. I spent the past 15 Father's Days without him. Today, I just happened to be in Omaha playing in the biggest game of my life, and he was there with me." His father, LSU linebacker Mike Mahtook, died when Mikie was 4.....
Only 26 major league baseball players and managers have college degrees. That;s out of a pool of 1,042...Meghan Huggins, a high school goal at Springdale, Ark., earned a scholarship to Lamar. "I wish I could major in soccer in college,: she told theArkansas Democrat-Gazette, "but they make you you get a degree in some kind of something."...Montana Tech football coach Bob Green to a radio station in Butte, Mont.: "I hate to sound like an old coach, but I'm an old coach. I was coaching when the Dead Sea was only sick."
The Hornets are interested in acquiring free agent forward Brandon Bass. They drafted him out of LSUin 2005, but cut him after two seasons. He signed with Dallas. He averaged 8.5 points and 4.5 rebounds with the Mavericks last season. The Hornets are also interested in signing guard Jannero Pargo, who played in Europe last season. He was with the Hornets two seasons ago. Signing Pargo would mean trading away Morris Peterson, Antonio Daniels or Devin Brown. The Hornets, who have the highest payroll in the NBA, will participate in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas from July 10-19. The team will feature recent draft choices Darren Collison and Marcus Thornton as well as veteran Julian Wright. Hornets scout Rod Werdann will coach the team. Former LSU guard Terry Martin is on the team...
Johnny Altobello, who coached his prep basketball teams at St. Aloysius and De La Salle to eight state championships, died Tuesday night. He was 89. Altobello was basketball coachat St. Aloysius from 1947-53. He took over De La Salle in 1953 until 1970. De La Salle renamed its gym for him in 1995. He was inducted into the Louisiana High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame, the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and the Greater New Olreans Sports Hall of Fame...
Georgia's second-best running back prospect, Lpganville's Storm Johnson, has committed to LSU. Johnson, a 6-foot-1, 217-pound rising senior, rushed for 1,300 yards and 21 touchdowns in 165 carries last season. He's he second Atlanta area player to commit to LSU, joining Northview tight end Cameron Fordham. He is the third from Georgia, including Troup's Brandon Worle. Johnson's decision to become a Tiger is not a surprise because he had told Rivals and Scout recruiting services that he would commit on July 11. Johnson picked LSU over Oklahoma and Florida....What are the chances of Bernie Madoff getting elected banker for the Monopoly tournament during board-game night at the federal pen?
At least one NFL director of player personnel (he requested anonymity) looks for the Saints to win the NFC South this season. In the following question-and-answer session, he answered questions on why he is looking for a return to the postseason for the Saints:
