• By RANDY ROSETTA
• Advocate sportswriter
• Published: Dec 14, 2009 - Page: 1C

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The 2009 season won’t go down as one of the most productive for the LSU offense, but Tigers quarterback Jordan Jefferson still accomplished enough to catch the attention of Penn State.

The No. 13-ranked LSU (9-3) No. 11 Nittany Lions (10-2) collide New Year’s Day in the Capital One Bowl in Orlando, Fla. And as Penn State got set to launch preparations Friday, Jefferson was a popular topic.

“I think he’s a really good playmaker,” Lions linebacker Sean Lee said. “He’s a guy we’re going to have to keep contained. If we let him go, I really think their offense goes as far as he takes them.”

It’s hard to argue against fifth-year senior Daryll Clark giving Penn State an advantage at quarterback. Clark, the Big Ten’s Most Valuable Player, passed for 2,787 yards and 23 touchdowns this season.

As a first-year starter a year ago, though, Clark’s statistics were comparable to Jefferson’s this season in his first full campaign at the controls.

In 13 games last season, Clark passed for 2,592 yards (199.4 a game), 19 touchdowns and six interceptions. Jefferson, who turned 19 in August, has thrown for 1,964 yards in 11 games this fall (178.5 per game) with 16 touchdowns and six interceptions.

Clark, who last season took over as a 22-year-old junior in his fourth season, praised his younger counterpart.

“I thought he managed the games that they played this year very well for a young guy,” Clark said. “He’s definitely a raw talent and he makes plays with his feet and has a really live arm as well. For him to step into that type of situation that he had to handle, I thought he did a really good job. For him to be playing in a really nice bowl, for him to lead a successful offense through a successful season speaks volumes about what he can do for his football team.”

Practice schedule LSU released its bowl practice schedule Saturday.

The Tigers will work out nine consecutive days in Baton Rouge  starting today.

After a two-day break for Christmas, LSU will fly to Orlando, Fla., on Dec. 26 and resume practice that day.

Vivid memory It’s been 36 seasons since LSU and Penn State played on the football field, but longtime Lions coach Joe Paterno has a vivid memory of the environment his team encountered at the 1974 Orange Bowl.

“I’ve got to get our fans ready to get in there and do their job because it’s going to be a wild game,” Paterno said. “Their fans, they are as good as anybody’s in the country, and I feel the same way about our fans.”