Summertime allows for a little bit of fun.
The 104.5 ESPN staff has been watching LSU for portions of five decades. National titles have come and gone. Top draft picks, Heisman Trophies and Golden Spikes Awards litter LSU’s history.
Who’s your favorite?
That’s the question we asked the staff.
Jacob Hester, Co-Host, Off the Bench – If I have to narrow it down, I’d probably say Kevin Faulk, but it’s almost impossible to leave out Todd Walker and Stromile Swift. Kevin made LSU cool again by choosing to stay home, and you can make a strong argument he was the most important recruit in LSU history. Todd and Stromile were both from my area of Shreveport/Bossier, so they gave kids like me hope that you could make it from there to Baton Rouge and become stars. It also didn’t hurt that they were both absolute studs.
Matt Flynn, Co-Host, Off the Bench – Jamarcus Russell…(unfortunately) I had a front row seat at watching that guy play a lot of football and he was awesome.
Taylor Sharp, Video Producer, Off the Bench – Used to love watching Jamal Adams play, Guy could lay the wood at the line of scrimmage and play drop back into coverage when needed. He was a guy that would absolutely bring it every single Saturday, any time the defense needed a spark, Adams became that spark!
Alondra Villarreal, Video Producer, Off the Bench – It’s hard for me not to say Joe Burrow, but recency bias, Paul Skenes. It felt like every time he was pitching, I was witnessing history being made in real time. It felt unreal every single time and amazed me every time. That entire ’23 run was just so fun, the entire season feels legendary.
Charles Hanagriff, Co-Host, Live at Lunch – The first name that came to mind was Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, then known as Chris Jackson. He was the best scorer I ever saw in person at LSU (I didn’t see Pete Maravich play live). He was also part of some of the most memorable games in LSU basketball history, against the likes of Loyola Marymount, UNLV, and Georgetown.
Hunt Palmer, Host, Hunt Palmer Show – I’ll be the only one who gives this answer. My favorite action in all of sports is infield defense on the diamond. Steven Milam is the best infield defender in LSU history. His combination of range and hands dazzles the eye. He routinely makes the difficult look easy. I could watch it all day. Thankfully, I get to watch it for another year.
Jordan Kitchens, Host, Hunt Palmer Show – My favorite LSU player to watch all time is and was Tyrann Mathieu. But in high school, when Leonard Fournette was going that was must-watch TV. Every week to see who he’s running over next and how many yards we could put up. So prime Lenny before the Bama massacre
Matt Moscona, Host, After Further Review – Nostalgia tends to guide these answers. My first memories of LSU football were the six straight losing seasons from 1989-1994. When Kevin Faulk showed up a year later, he showed the promise of what LSU football could be and would become. From the moment he stepped foot on campus, he was a big play waiting to happen. His 200-yard game against Michigan State as a freshman. The punt return against Houston to rescue LSU in 1996. The cover of SI after the Florida upset in 1997. I could go on forever. Retire his jersey.
Matthew Musso, Audio Producer, After Further Review – Joe Burrow and Dylan Crews. This is tough because there are so many across multiple sports, but I go with Burrow and Crews for the same reason. They both accomplished something I had never seen in my lifetime. I didn’t get to watch Billy Cannon’s Heisman season or Ben McDonald pitch his way to a Golden Spikes, but I got to watch both Burrow and Crews win those awards in route to National Championships.
Those seasons were special, and you saw the full range of their abilities in each. Two multi-year Tigers who seemed to come through every time in the big moment while simultaneously elevating their teammates across their years in Baton Rouge.
Paul O’Neill, Video Producer, After Further Review – The player that really got me into LSU football was Josh Reed. He rewrote the SEC record books while only playing two years at WR. His trophy case is pretty full from his All-American season in 2001. Reed’s record setting 2002 Sugar Bowl performance is still one of the most impressive games I remember watching.
