Gordy Rush talks LSU football at Pelican Point
The Ascension Chamber of Commerce hosted their Business After Hours event at the Pelican Point Golf Club in Gonzales on July 23, and LSU football was the main topic of conversation.
The function was sponsored by the club, along with Guaranty Media. Eagle 98.1 and staple of LSU football Gordy Rush were there to take in the event.
Along with being a former Tiger football player, Rush is the Vice President/Market Manager of Guaranty Media. He has also been a sideline reporter for the LSU Sports Radio Network for 22 years.
In addition to reporting, he hosts the "Inside LSU Football with Les Miles" television show and "LSU Gameday Live" on Cox Sports Television.
Rush was there to give his insights on this year's team.
"I think that all the pieces are in place for LSU to have a nice season," Rush said. "All these schools in the SEC are getting great talent now because of the resources that they have, so the league is more competitive than it was five years ago. That being said, LSU has tremendous talent. The mystery is a quarterback."
Rush said that sophomore QB Brandon Harris has looked very sharp so far this offseason, and true freshman running back Derrius Guice has stood out as well.
Still, he thinks it's far too early to make projections about 2015-16.
"After seeing last year, and some spring, I'm really interested to see what they decide to go with in terms of 'this is who we are offensively' before I make any judgements on what kind of season they're going to have," Rush said. "We won't know until three weeks into the fall camp. So, all these people that are giving projections right now, it's way too early.
"That being said, LSU has a tremendous amount of talent. They should be very competitive with eight-plus wins. It's just going to count on what kind of quarterback play they get."
Another hop topic Rush touched on was LSU's new defensive coordinator Kevin Steele.
He became the Tigers' new defensive general after John Chavis left for Texas A&M. Steele was previously at Alabama, where he served as linebackers coach under Nick Saban.
Before that, he was defensive coordinator at Clemson.
There was some negativity following the Steele hire due to Clemson's embarrassing defensive performance in a 70-33 loss in the 2012 Orange Bowl. However, Rush thought the negativity was unfair.
"People forget that, that West Virginia team hung up over 430 yards on LSU, and Steele had one corner and one safety down," Rush said. "He played with a true freshman, and they got really crushed. Strategy-wise, I think he's fantastic, and [Ed] Orgeron is such a motivator.
"I'm really interested to see how Steele handles fast-paced offenses because Chavis did a great job with that, while Saban has had his ups and downs at Alabama. So, I'm interested to see what he does differently than what Nick did."
Besides Rush getting everyone up to speed on the upcoming LSU season, there was plenty of networking that took place at the well-attended event.
Business representatives from across the parish mingled and enjoyed the atmosphere, food and wine.
Before Rush was introduced, door prizes were given. These prizes included four tickets to LSU's season opener against McNeese State.
To view a photo gallery of the event and a video of Rush talking LSU football, visit our website at www.weeklycitizen.com.