2013 Pre-Season Preview: LSU Tigers

2012 Record: 10-3 (6-2 in SEC)

Head Coach: Les Miles (85-21 at LSU, 113-42 All-Time)

Four Year Trend: 10.75 wins and 2.5 losses per season

Last Bowl Game: 2012 Chick-fil-A Bowl: lost to Clemson 25-24

Stadium: Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, LA (capacity = 92,400)

Home Field Advantage: ranked 9th out of 69 BCS teams

Schedule Glimpse:

2013 Schedule Link

Out of Conference: 8/31 vs TCU (in Arlington), 9/7 vs UAB, 9/14 vs Kent State, 10/26 vs Furman

Toughest Conference Home Games: 10/12 vs Florida, 11/23 vs Texas A&M

Toughest Conference Road Games: 9/28 at Georgia, 11/9 at Alabama

Statistical Snapshot:

2012 Statistics Link

Stats to Fear: scored TDs on just 50.94% of red zone trips (11th in SEC), completed 58.4% of passes in 2012 (11th in SEC)

Stats to Cheer: gained 33 turnovers in 2012 (2nd in SEC), had 35 sacks in 2012 (3rd in SEC), held opponents to 31.89% on third downs (2nd in SEC)

Advanced Stats (Football Outsiders 2012 FEI Ranking): 12th out of 124 teams

Personnel:

Phil Steele's Returning Starters: Offense: 8, Defense: 4, Special Teams: 0

Key Defensive Returnees: LB Lamin Barrow (104 tackles), CB Jalen Mills (57 tackles), S Craig Loston (55 tackles)

Key Offensive Returnees: QB Zach Mettenberger (2609 yds pass, 58.8% completions, 12 TD, 7 INT), RB Jeremy Hill (755 yds rush, 5.32 ypc, 12 TD), RB Kenny Hilliard (464 yds rush, 5.66 ypc, 6 TD), RB Alfred Blue (270 yds rush, 6.75 ypc, 2 TD), WR Jarvis Landry (56 rec, 5 TD), WR Odell Beckham Jr (43 rec)

Top 2013 Recruits: CB Tre'Davious White, OT Ethan Pocic, LB Kendell Beckwith, DE Frank Herron, DT Greg Gilmore

Verdict:

A lot of folks are down on LSU and Les Miles after a 10-3 season in which they had a lackluster performance in their bowl game against Clemson. LSU has been very consistent under Miles with six of his eight seasons ending with LSU having double-digit win totals. I wouldn't expect a lot to change this season.

On offense, LSU fans dreamed of a more prolific passing game with Zach Mettenberger under center but that didn't come to be in 2012. In 2013, with one year of SEC football under his belt, can Mettenberger be a more consistent and better QB? One thing is for sure when you talk about LSU football and that is the RB corps will be stocked. The Tigers lost two RBs off the 2012 squad but still have three that could start for just about anybody in the country. The WR corps is in tact as the top three receivers return. The WRs are talented but still need to be more explosive for this offense to really click. The OL loses three starters but will still return four players that have started seven or more games.

The defense has been very consistent under Les Miles and John Chavis. Over the last four years, the LSU defense has given up less than 20 ppg every year. That's solid and it puts LSU in the position to win every time they hit the field. The LSU DL loses four, yes four, players who got drafted into the NFL. There is still talent left but for the most part it's untested. Anthony Johnson is the only member of the defensive line that had double-digit tackles last season. The LB corps loses Kevin Minter but return pretty much everybody else and have players like Kwon Alexander and Tahj Jones waiting in the wings for their shot. The secondary loses Eric Reid and Tharold Simon but should once again be a strength for this defense. There are a lot of losses on this defense from a personnel standpoint but I expect the Tigers to field another solid defense.

The conference schedule was not kind to the Tigers as they must face Florida and Georgia from the East. That by itself will make it tough for the LSU to try and keep up with Alabama and A&M, both of whom have much easier opponents from the East. I see this LSU team once again being a difficult team to handle in the SEC and they will play a part in who wins both the East and the West this year. That being said, I do see them having to wait to hit double-digit victories until they play their bowl game.

Prediction: 9-3

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