Nov 10, 2008 - 5:19 PM
0 shoutsBATON ROUGE, Louisiana (Ticker) -- Louisiana State coach Les Miles evidently feels that Jarrett Lee needs a break.
Miles indicated Monday that he was strongly leaning toward rotating Lee and Jordan Jefferson at quarterback next Saturday when 20th-ranked LSU hosts Troy.
Lee has shown flashes of potential but also has been prone to mistakes this season. The redshirt freshman has thrown an SEC-high 14 interceptions, including four in last Saturday's 27-21 overtime loss to top-ranked Alabama.
"We ask (Lee) to perform and maybe continue to ask him to do too much," Miles said Monday. "We are still going to throw it. We are still at our best when he is throwing the ball to our playmakers."
Miles admitted that a quarterback rotation with Jefferson could prove beneficial to Lee, who played better in a similar system earlier this year with Andrew Hatch.
"(Lee) is young, and maybe we need to get him off the field a little bit," Miles said. "Maybe we'll spell him with Jefferson. We'll see how Jordan Jefferson is doing and how he performs.
"I think that Lee performed probably best when it was Hatch and him, and he was spelled for a pretty routine basis. It gave him a chance to clear his head and go back on the field and play. That might be the recipe we are looking for, and we are going to try that."
The Tigers (6-3, 3-3 SEC West) owned a 14-7 lead late in the first half Saturday when Lee threw his second interception, which Rashad Johnson returned 54 yards for a game-tying touchdown.
Lee's last pick, also to Johnson, came on LSU's overtime possession.
The unbeaten Crimson Tide capitalized on the opportunity, winning the game on John Parker Wilson's 1-yard quarterback keeper to win the SEC West and remain atop the BCS standings.
Despite Lee's costly mistakes, Miles maintained that the Tigers have confidence in the Texas native.
"We are going to coach him, believe in him, and he is truly at this point in the season one of two guys and the guy who has had the most work," Miles said. "Certainly he has a very talented arm and has made a lot of big plays for us.
"We have to develop him and believe in him, and we are going to."
Jefferson, a highly touted true freshman, has played sparingly in three games this season.
