Yep, Ryan Perrilloux is finally gone from LSU (insert Fulmer on the phone joke here).

Georgia fans are probably relieved that they won’t have to face an obviously talented quarterback in Baton Rouge next year, but the impact on the LSU program is still up in the air. At first glance, it seems like a no-brainer that the Tigers are in deep trouble next year. There is a drop-off after Perrilloux for sure. But there’s also the addition-by-subtraction theory: Perrilloux was clearly a distraction, and ending the lingering uncertainty over his status can help the team move forward. Beyond that, it couldn’t have been a good message for the rest of the team that the staff went out of its way to cover for such a discipline problem.

Still, LSU fans have to be queasy when they look at this depth chart:

• Andrew Hatch: transfer from Harvard. That’s only part of the story. As Opinionated Catholic says, “He is our Harvard Transfer, that played Backup at Harvard, there that never saw anytime in a game while in the Ivy League, that interrupted his college football career by going on a Mormon Mission to South America, in which he got a serious freak injury playing Soccer, and who spent a lot of time rehabing , and played about 3 plays last year for LSU.”
• Jarrett Lee: a four-star redshirt freshman from Texas
• Jordan Jefferson: a 6’5″ four-star incoming freshman from Louisiana

So you have three guys with the combined D-1 experience of Blake Barnes. Scary stuff, but I wouldn’t write LSU off just yet. They have enough talent on that team, especially on defense, to challenge for the SEC West. If they can find a competent, poised quarterback who avoids costly mistakes and meltdowns, they’re right back in the mix. This program has won national titles with Matt Mauck and Matt Flynn.

PS…there’s one more point here. Les Miles took some heat last year for sticking with Flynn over Perrilloux especially after the SEC Championship. Sometimes coaches have their reasons for not turning the keys over to the most talented guy.