LSU receiver Marshall should play

[aubiefifty 18,222]

Injured LSU wide receiver Terrace Marshall ‘should be ready to play’ against Auburn

Posted Oct 21, 2019

3-4 minutes

Auburn Football

LSU’s high-powered offense expects to add a key piece that has been missing for the last month when Auburn comes to Baton Rouge, La., this weekend.

Wide receiver Terrace Marshall, who has been sidelined for a month with a broken foot, is likely to make his return this weekend when No. 2 LSU (7-0, 4-0 SEC) hosts No. 9 Auburn (6-1, 3-1) at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in Tiger Stadium. Marshall broke his foot on Sept. 21 against Vanderbilt.

“We plan on easing him along, see how much he could do," LSU coach Ed Orgeron said during his weekly press conference on Monday. “.... He’s going to want to do everything and be ready to go, but we feel that by game time he should be ready.”

The likely return of Marshall is another boost to the nation’s No. 2 scoring offense and No. 2 passing attack. LSU is averaging 50.1 points per game and 385.7 passing yards per game, with quarterback Joe Burrow the front-runner for the Heisman Trophy while completing close to 80 percent of his passes under the team’s new RPO-centric offensive scheme.

The 6-foot-4, 200-pound Marshall was a big part of that success through the first four games of the season. The sophomore caught 20 passes for 304 yards and six touchdowns before sustaining his foot injury against Vanderbilt. His six touchdowns led the nation through the first four weeks of the season.

Marshall was also a major red-zone threat for LSU, with five of his six touchdowns coming from inside the opponent’s 20-yard line. His imminent return could be critical for LSU -- which struggled in the red zone against Mississippi State last weekend, scoring touchdowns on just 2-of-5 trips -- against an Auburn defense that is fourth nationally in red-zone touchdown percentage. Kevin Steele’s unit is allowing a touchdown on just 40 percent of opponent red-zone trips, having ceded a touchdown eight times on 20 red-zone opportunities this season.

“We feel that with Terrace in there, it’s hard to double Ja’Marr (Chase) or Justin (Jefferson), and obviously Terrace gives us a big threat in the red zone, and Joe (Burrow) feels comfortable with him, so he’s a great addition," Orgeron said. "I think having him back and making some adjustments with the play-calling and the formations is going to help us.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.

[Linayus 676]

Seems like every team gets their "injured" players back for us: Florida, LSU, probably Bama too by that time. Ugh.

[Dual-Threat Rigby 9,040]

Dont want to hurt the guy but this is a situation where, in basketball, you test how healthy the guy is by forcing him to exert whatever was hurt. If Im a CB im bumping him on his first route break. Nothing dirty, but prove you're good to go