2013-14 Preview (SEC) LSU
Ever since Alabama rose to the top of the SEC West, and the nation, LSU has been forced to take a backseat…and they don’t like it. These two teams have waged some great battles over the last few seasons but the majority of the time Alabama has come out on top so they have grabbed the spoils.
LSU Tigers
Coach: Les Miles
2012 Record: 10-3
Odds of winning BCS Championship: +2000
Coming into 2013 there isn’t much buzz about the team down in Baton Rouge and it won’t be long until we see whether that is accurate and this is just a ho-hum Top 15 sort of squad or whether they have something brewing on the bayou that just hasn’t been identified yet..
The Tigers have a great challenge start the season with a neutral site game against TCU.
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If they win the hype machine will go into overdrive until they face off against Georgia in Athens, a loss and things could spiral. Either way they definitely have the right kind of schedule to make a BCS appearance but to do so they will need to trim a couple of losses off of last year’s 10-3 result.
Odds are this is a dangerous but not championship calibre squad but anything can happen.
2013 might be the one year the LSU offense might have to carry the defense, or at least carry its own weight.
There are double the number of returning starters on this side of the ball including quarterback Zach Mettenberger, who failed to live up to his transfer hype last season. When you see him you think you see a QB with all the tools but the production just wasn’t there last season and it hurt them in games where they were playing top opponents – which they do often – because you just can’t be one dimensional in those contests.
With three offensive linemen returning and a deep stable of running backs the Tigers should again have a very good ground attack. With Jeremy Hill getting into trouble in the offseason it is unclear who the lead dog will be but Hill, senior Alfred Blue and junior Kenny Hilliard all averaged better than 5 yards per carry.
If Mettenberger can get the passing game going with receivers Odell Beckham and Jarvis Landry than the offense has the potential to surprise and maybe even be in the top half of the league.
Last year the Tigers had another great defense ranking 3rd in the SEC in points, rushing and total yards and as high as 8th nationally in total yards too. As they normally do, they lost a ton of talent to the NFL leaving them with just 3 starters remaining. There is strength in the middle with middle linebacker Lamin Barrow and safety Craig Loston returning.
Like Alabama the Tigers reload on defense so even though we may not recognize some of the names right now odds are there are All-Americans and future first round picks finally getting their chance to shine. They may not be epically good but they should be very strong on defense. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
2013-14 Record Projection: 9-3
LSU is kind of lying in the weeds right now and we aren’t hearing much from coach Les Miles. No one is expecting an epic fail but there is a possibility their defense takes a step back and that Mettenberger never really lives up to expectations. When you put those together against the schedule they have things could unravel pretty quickly.
I am really looking forward to their opener against TCU. If you have read some of the other pieces that have been posted you know I am calling that one for the Horned Frogs but the Tigers have plenty of time to regroup before they visit Georgia, a game which could mess up the Dawgs march to the SEC title game.
For me the two games that will make or break 2013 for LSU are home games against Florida and Texas A&M. I think they can win them both, and if they do have another very good season overall.
Lose them and people are going to start talking about what is wrong with LSU – the answer to that question is nothing, they just aren’t a top 10 teams this season.
2013 Tigers Schedule:
AUG 31 – TCU (Arlington)
SEP 7 – UAB
SEP 14 – Kent State
SEP 21 – Auburn
SEP 28 – @Georgia
OCT 5 – @Mississippi State
OCT 12 – Florida
OCT 19 – @Ole Miss
OCT 26 – Furman
NOV 9 – @Alabama
NOV 23 – Texas A&M
NOV 30 – Arkansas
