LSU Gold

Tigers Move Into Top 10 After Improving to 6-1

by LSUsports.net (@LSUsports)
+0
Tigers Move Into Top 10 After Improving to 6-1

BATON ROUGE — For the first time this season, the LSU football team moved into the Top 10 in both the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today Coaches’ Polls, coming in at No. 10 in each.

The first Bowl Championship Series rankings will be released on Oct. 21 at 5 p.m. CDT. LSU finished the 2001 season ranked 13th in the BCS standings, which are tabulated prior to the bowls.

The Tigers (6-1, 3-0 SEC) scored 25 third-quarter points and came back from 11 points down to defeat South Carolina, 38-14, on Saturday evening in Tiger Stadium. LSU’s 3-0 conference start is its first since 1987.

The Top-10 rankings are the first for the Tigers during the regular season since the week of Oct. 5-12, 1998, when LSU was ranked No. 6 before losing to 12th-ranked Georgia at home, 28-27.

LSU was ranked No. 7 in the AP and No. 8 in the Coaches’ Poll after its 2002 Sugar Bowl victory over Illinois on Jan. 1.

Winners of six-straight and 12 of 13 games, the Tigers’ only loss this season came in the opening game at Virginia Tech. The Hokies are undefeated at 7-0 and ranked third in both polls this week.

LSU began the 2002 season ranked 14th and 13th before falling to 24th and 23rd after the Sept. 1 loss to the Hokies, 26-8. Since then, LSU’s “James Gang” defense has solidified its place as the No. 1 side in the nation, allowing only 217.4 yards per game.

This weekend, LSU travels to Auburn, Ala., to face the Tigers in an 11:30 a.m. contest to be televised by JP Sports.