BATON ROUGE — LSU continued to prepare for Saturday’s Southeastern Conference opener against seventh-ranked Georgia with a two-hour workout on Wednesday at the Charles McClendon Practice Facility.
The Tigers will practice again on Thursday followed by a walk-thru in Tiger Stadium on Friday afternoon. Kickoff for Saturday’s nationally-televised contest is set for 2:30 p.m. on CBS.
LSU, ranked No. 10 in the nation in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll and No. 11 by the Associated Press, enters the contest with a 3-0 mark after last week’s 35-7 win over Western Illinois. Georgia, ranked No. 7 in both polls, has allowed only 17 points this season and also stands at 3-0 overall and 1-0 in league play following last week’s 31-7 victory over South Carolina.
“It’s been a good week of practice,” LSU coach Nick Saban said after Wednesday’s workout. “The players have been sharp in practice and the focus has been good. This game is a great opportunity for our players. It’s the first SEC game and every game is an important game in our league.”
Against Georgia, the Tigers will send one of the nation’s top-rated offenses against one of the country’s best defenses. LSU is currently averaging a whopping 47.7 points a contest, while the Bulldogs have allowed only 17 points all season.
“I think that they have a whole lot of team speed on defense,” Saban said. “They play hard and they are very good tacklers. They get a lot of pressure on the quarterback and their whole deal is to affect the quarterback in the game. I think that is a good philosophy because I think if you can affect the quarterback that affects his efficiency in the game and that has a lot to do with the outcome of the game.
“A real key for us in the game is going to be whether or not we are going to be able to protect and block their blitz and be able to throw the ball to our skill guys down the field.”
When asked about the tailback situation, Saban said LSU has two starting running backs in Joseph Addai and Shyrone Carey and that both players will see action on Saturday, but that the most carries may go to “who’s hot”. Carey is coming off a career-best 124 yards last week against Western Illinois, while Addai had 80-plus yards rushing in each of LSU’s first two games.
Saban said the Tigers enter the contest basically injury-free as both defensive end Kirston Pittman (knee) and cornerback Randall Gay (broken arm) practiced on Wednesday. Saban said both Pittman and Gay could see action on Saturday. Saban added that wide receiver Michael Clayton (ankle) and center Ben Wilkerson (ankle) are both fine and will be ready to go on Saturday.