Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
WHEN: Saturday, November 9th; TBD
WHERE: Bryant-Denny Stadium (Tuscaloosa, AL)
LAST SEASON: 10-3 (6-2 SEC, 2nd in Western Division
CURRENT PRESEASON RANKING: 13th in Preseason USA Today Coaches Poll
CURRENT BETTING LINE: Alabama by 11.5
TV: TBD
RADIO: Crimson Tide Sports Network, local affiliates listed here.
SERIES HISTORY: Alabama leads the series 47-25-5. The Tide won the last meeting 21-17, thanks to this perfectly called screen pass to T.J. Yeldon.
OFFENSE: LSU’s offense in 2013 begins and ends with Zach Mettenberger, who enters his second year as the team’s starting quarterback. Mettenberger had high expectations entering the 2013 season as he replaced the Jordan Jefferson/Jarrett Lee combo that helped the Tigers to the BCS National Championship game the previous year.
Mettenberger was considered the missing piece between a runner-up finish, and an outright BCS crown. It was a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde season for the Georgia transfer, as he drifted between abysmal performances and gems. He started out slow, but really turned things around in the Alabama game in Baton Rouge where he put together a terrific second half that nearly led the Bayou Bengals to a victory that would have likely sent them to the SEC Championship Game, and possibly to a BCS National Championship matchup with Notre Dame in Miami.
For the season, Mettenberger completed 59 percent of his passes for 2609 yards and 12 touchdowns to 7 interceptions. More his expected out of Mettenberger this season as former Miami Dolphins head coach and Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Cam Cameron is handed the reigns to the offense.
Helping Mettenberger’s cause is one of the premier playmakers in the conference in junior wide receiver Odell Beckham. Beckham was LSU’s leading receiver a year ago with 713 yards and two touchdowns. He also returned two punts for touchdowns, and he is as dangerous as anybody in the country in the open field. Teamed with junior Jarvis Landry, the Tigers have an explosive and potentially lethal tandem of receivers on the outside.
Sophomore running back Jeremy Hill is as talented as anybody in the country, and he exploded onto the scene as a freshman with 755 yards and 12 touchdowns on a 5.3 yards per carry average. His status, however, is still up in the air as he remains indefinitely suspended after allegedly punching a man outside of a bar in April. Luckily for LSU, they have several talented runners waiting in line to pick up the slack if Hill does not return to the team. Senior Alfred Blue and junior Kenny Hilliard can give the Tigers a strong 1-2 punch regardless of what happens to Hill.
LSU’s offensive line returns three starters in junior La’el Collins at left tackle, sophomore Trai Turner at right guard, and sophomore Vadal Alexander at right tackle. Senior Josh Williford slides in at left guard, and he has plenty of starting experience in the past. He started the first six games last season before suffering a concussion that knocked him out for the remainder of the campaign. He made thirteen starts the previous two years combined. The only real question mark is at center as junior Elliott Porter tries to fill the big shoes left behind from three-year starter P.J. Lonergan.
Conclusion: LSU’s offensive line should win most battles in the trenches and open up holes for Blue and Hilliard to run through, and give Mettenberger ample time in the pocket. The fate of LSU’s offense lies on the shoulders of Mettenberger, as his success or failure will directly correlate to the success or failure of LSU’s offense in 2013.
LSU finished 85th nationally in total offense last year, but still managed to win ten games thanks to their defense. This season, with only three starters returning on the other side of the ball, more will be asked of from the Tigers offense if they plan on making noise in the SEC West and potentially unseating Alabama from their perch atop the division.
DEFENSE: The driving force behind LSU’s success in the past has always been their defense, as their offense failed to live up their end of the bargain. They had an outstanding defense during their march to the title game in 2011, but their offensive shortcomings, along with an otherworldly performance from Alabama’s defense, eventually culminated in their only loss of the season. Last season, LSU finished 8th nationally in total defense. They were 12th in scoring defense, 9th in rushing defense, and 28th in passing defense. The Bayou Bengals were decimated by early departures into the NFL draft with eleven guys declaring early, including six starters from last season’s defense. Fortunately for LSU, the cupboards aren’t bare for Les Miles and defensive coordinator John Chavis as, much like Alabama, the Tigers tend to reload and not rebuild.
On the defensive line, the Tigers are ushering in four new starters with loads of potential. The Tigers have featured nasty defensive lines in their history, and even without a single returning starter, they have the potential to be scary up front once again. Junior Jermauria Rasco and sophomore Danielle Hunter will be the starters on the ends. Both were featured in the rotation last year, and both could be terrors to opposing quarterbacks in 2013. Hunter has the potential to be one of the premier pass rushers in the SEC. On the inside, juniors Anthony Johnson and Ego Ferguson will start. Johnson is the seasoned veteran of the group as he made three starts last season. Ferguson has played in 26 games in two years with no starts. Johnson could help with the pass rush from the inside, while Ferguson eats space in the middle and stops the run. The depth behind these four guys is the real question, as Rasco, Hunter, Johnson, and Ferguson are the only defensive lineman on the roster who have taken a snap in live game action.
The loss of linebacker Kevin Minter to early departure for the NFL Draft was a huge blow to LSU’s defense. Minter made 130 tackles with 4 sacks a year ago, including a 20 tackle performance against Florida, and 19 tackles against Clemson in their bowl game. Minter will be tough to replace, but just like the defensive line, the Tigers have a load of talent at linebacker. Senior Lamin Barrow was the team’s second leading tackle with 104 a year ago, and he’ll anchor the middle this year. Sophomore Kwon Alexander made a big impact as a true freshman a year ago before being lost for the season after suffering a broken ankle against Florida. He figures to earn one of the starting positions at linebacker. Senior Tajh Jones, sophomore Lamar Louis, and true freshman Kendell Beckwith figure to compete for the other starting spot, and they should all have a prominent role in the rotation.
In the secondary, sophomore cornerbacks Jalen Mills and Jalen Collins return after seeing prominent roles as freshman. Mills was a freshman All-American last year after starting all 13 games and possesses all the tools to be a shutdown corner. Collins played in all 13 games as a redshirt freshman, and was named freshman All-SEC for his efforts. Mills and Collins could very well become as good as any other duo of cornerbacks in the country. At safety, senior Craig Loston is a head hunter who was second team All-SEC in 2012. If he can stay healthy, along with junior Ronald Martin at the other safety spot and Mills and Collins at corner, then LSU’s secondary could be even better in 2013.
Conclusion: There figures to be a learning curve for some of the new starters on LSU’s defense early in 2013, but Miles and Chavis should field another Top-20 defense in 2013. The talent is most certainly there, they’ll just have to hope that some of guys mature quicker than most expect. The defensive line is loaded with potential and could wreak havoc upon quarterbacks in the SEC; the linebackers are deep and talented led by Lamin Barrow who has All-American potential; and the secondary could very well bolster the top cornerback duo in the country by season’s end if Mills and Collins continue to develop at the rate we saw last season.
SPECIAL TEAMS: Brad Wing, one of the top punters/head cases in the nation, declared early for the NFL Draft, but LSU figures to be fine in that department as sophomore Jamie Kehn, also from Australia, takes the full-time reigns. Keehn averaged 43.7 yards per kick on 12 attempts last season. He punted 9 times for an average of 44.6 yards in LSU’s loss to Clemson in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. Junior James Hairston will take over the kicking duties from Drew Alleman, who was 21-of-29 on field goals last year, and a perfect 44-of-44 on extra points.
In the return game, junior Odell Beckham has game breaking potential. He averaged 9 yards per punt return last season, and returned two punts for touchdowns last season.
Conclusion: Even after replacing their starting kicker and punter from a year ago, special teams should once again be a strength for the Tigers in 2013. Jamie Kehn should fill the shoes of Brad Wing flawlessly. The jury is still out on Hairston, but he should be a serviceable kicker in the very least. And then, of course, they have the potential to break it open in the return game with Beckham.
Coaching: We all laugh about Les Miles’ clock management, his dietary habits, and his press conferences that make sense to only him, but the fact is: Miles has bee nothing but a winner at LSU. He’s compiled an 85-21 record over eight years in Baton Rouge, won two SEC Championships and a National Title. He has a 5-4 record against Alabama in his career, and has held his own against Nick Saban, going 3-4, with three of the four losses coming by less than ten points. Miles has frustrated the fan base numerous times in his tenure, but not many teams have been as successful as LSU since Miles took over the reigns in 2005.
Conclusion: Despite a lot of inexperience on defense, The Mad Hatter will more than likely work his magic once again in 2013 and lead LSU to double digit wins. Texas A&M is the talk of the town, but don’t be surprised if LSU is the primary challenger to Alabama in the Western Division. The Tigers have a tough schedule that includes four games against teams ranked in the Top-1o of the Preseason Coaches Poll. They had the misfortune of drawing both Florida and Georgia from the SEC East, but the Tigers can go toe-to-toe with any team in the country on any given Saturday. Like usual, expect the SEC West to hang in the balance when Alabama faces off with LSU at Bryant-Denny.
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