BATON ROUGE — LSU’s 11th-ranked football team will make a rare appearance in Nashville on Saturday as the Tigers will face a much-improved Vanderbilt team at 6 p.m. in a contest televised to a national audience by ESPN2.
In addition, the game can be heard on the LSU Sports Radio Network as well as in the LSUsports.net’s Geaux Zone.
Saturday’s game will mark the first meeting between the teams in Nashville since 1997, when the Tigers escaped with a 7-6 victory.
Since that 1997 meeting at Vanderbilt Stadium, the Tigers have played under three head coaches, won a national title, claimed a pair of Southeastern Conference titles and have played in four January bowl games.
Temp.
59?
Condition:
Mostly Cloudy
Rain Chance:
10%
Humidity:
60%
Wind:
N 8 mph
Sunset:
6:20 p.m. CT
Now, eight years since that one-point victory in Nashville, first-year LSU coach Les Miles brings the 2-1 Tigers into Vanderbilt stadium to face a 4-1 Commodore team, a squad who features the top quarterback in the SEC in Jay Cutler.
For the first time this season, LSU goes into a Saturday contest having had a normal week of practice preparation. LSU’s first month of the season changed just about on a daily basis due to a pair of hurricanes that devastated the state of Louisiana over a span of 30 days.
“We had a good week of practice,” Miles said. “We’ve worked hard and the players and coaching staff have done a nice job of preparing for this game. It was nice to have a full week. I’m looking forward to getting on the road and playing a game on a regular Saturday.”
The Tigers go into the Vanderbilt contest coming off a 37-7 win over Mississippi State a week ago in a game that sophomore quarterback JaMarcus Russell completed a school-record 87.5 percent of his passes (21 of 24). Russell, who is in his first full season as LSU’s starting signal-caller, has been the key to the Tiger offense thus far in 2005.
Kickoff:
6 p.m. CDT
Internet:
Geaux Zone
Television:
ESPN2
Radio:
LSU Sports Radio Network
Teams:
#11 LSU (2-1, 1-1 SEC)
Vanderbilt (4-1, 2-0 SEC)
Series:
LSU leads 19-7-1
Of Note:
LSU has held Vanderbilt to a TD or less in three straight games.
Senior wideout Skyler Green has been Russell’s favorite target through the first three games, leading the squad with 14 receptions for 108 yards, including a career-best tying nine catches a week ago against Mississippi State. Green also doubles as a return threat for the Tigers as he ranks second in the SEC in punt returns with a 16.8 average. A year ago, Green returned a punt 65 yards for a touchdown in LSU’s 24-7 victory over the Commodores in Tiger Stadium.
Senior running back Joseph Addai continues to stake his claim as one of the top runners in the league, ranking third in the conference in rushing with 279 yards and four touchdowns in three games for the Tigers. Addai is coming off a 86-yard, 1-TD effort against Mississippi State.
When Vanderbilt has the football, the Tigers will have to contend with Cutler, who ranks first in the conference in both passing yards (275.2 yards per game) and total offense (311.4 yards per game). Through five games, Cutler has connected on 126 of 206 passes for 1,376 yards and seven touchdowns. He’s only thrown three interceptions for a Vanderbilt squad who ranks first in the league in passing offense.
“We have to control him (Cutler),” Miles said. “He’s the player-maker of their offense and he’s certainly one of the reasons why they win.”
Cutler’s top target is that of senior wideout Erik Davis, who ranks second in the SEC with 35 receptions for 445 yards and a pair of scores. Freshman Earl Bennett has 25 receptions for 278 yards for the Commodores to rank third in the league.
While the Tigers will have to contend with the league’s best passing offense on Saturday, Vanderbilt in turn will have to deal with an LSU defense that has shown steady improvement with each game.
The Tigers are coming off their best defensive effort of the season a week ago, limiting Mississippi State to just seven first quarter points and only 229 yards of offense. The Tigers also recorded a season-best seven sacks in that game to run their season total to 12.
“We’re coming after them (opposing quarterback) a little more regularly,” Miles said of LSU’s increased sack total over the past two games. “I think we’re putting more pressure on them, and the guys up front expect themselves to get to the quarterback and understand how important that is for the team.”
Following Saturday’s game against the Commodores, the Tigers return home to Tiger Stadium for four straight home games, a stretch that sees LSU host Florida on Oct. 15, Auburn on Oct. 22, North Texas on Oct. 29 and Appalachian State on Nov. 5.
“I think we have a good football team,” Miles said. “I think we need to get into a routine and look forward to games on a normal basis. We need the same amount of break and the same amount of preparation in between, and I think that allows a team to improve pretty regularly. “
LSU NOTEBOOK
The Vanderbilt Series:
LSU and Vanderbilt meet for just the 28th time with the Tigers holding a 19-7-1 advantage in the series that dates back to 1902 … Last year, LSU posted a 24-7 win over the Commodores in Baton Rouge … Teams will play in Nashville for first time since a 7-6 LSU win in 1997 … LSU is 9-5 all-time against Vanderbilt in Nashville … LSU has won four straight and eight of the last nine against the Commodores … Only defeat during that span came in 1990 when the Commodores posted a 24-21 victory over the Tigers in Nashville … LSU has held Vanderbilt to a TD or less in three straight games — 7 points in 2004, 6 points in 1997 and 0 points in 1996 … Will mark the first meeting for Les Miles against Vanderbilt.
Nashville Tigers
Nashville is now the home of a pair of former LSU quarterbacks in Matt Mauck and Marcus Randall. Mauck recently signed with the Tennessee Titans as serves as a backup quarterback for the NFL franchise, while Randall is one the Titan’s practice squad as a defensive back.
Tigers Open With Three Of First Four On Road For First Time Since 1993
Saturday’s game against Vanderbilt will mark the third time in four games that LSU will play a contest away from Tiger Stadium. The last time LSU opened a season with three of its first four games coming on the road was in 1993 when the Tigers played at Texas A&M, at Mississippi State and at Tennessee during the first four weeks of the season. LSU’s only home game during that stretch came against Auburn. LSU posted a 1-3 mark during that 4-game stretch to open the 1993 season.
LSU And Vanderbilt On Network Television Somewhat Of A Rarity
LSU’s game against Vanderbilt will mark just the third time in 29 meetings that the teams will face off on network television. In 1990, Vanderbilt posted a 24-21 win over LSU in Nashville in a game televised by TBS Sports (then the SEC television package rights holder). The only other meeting on network television between the teams came in 1984 when LSU posted a 34-27 win over the Commodores in Baton Rouge in a game televised by ESPN.
LSU vs. The SEC Eastern Division
LSU will face its second SEC Eastern Division foe in 2005 on Saturday against Vanderbilt. Two weeks ago, the Tigers dropped a 30-27 decision to Tennessee in Baton Rouge. LSU has won five of six on the road against the SEC East. Since the 2000 season, LSU is 12-6 against opponents from the SEC Eastern Division. A year ago, the Tigers were 2-1 against the SEC Eastern Division, marking the third consecutive season the Tigers have had a winning record against teams from the other side of the league. LSU coach Les Miles is 0-1 vs. the SEC Eastern Division.
LSU-Vanderbilt Ties
Vanderbilt running backs coach Kenny Carter coached outside linebackers at LSU in 1999.
Volunteer State Tigers
LSU has one player on its roster from Tennessee … Senior defensive back Mario Stevenson is a native of Memphis.
Whitworth Has Started 42 Straight; Ranks As Second-Longest Streak In SEC
LSU senior OT Andrew Whitworth has started 42 straight games on the offensive line for the Tigers. Whitworth’s current streak of 42 consecutive starts ranks second in the SEC, just one game back of Florida center Mike Degory, who has started 43 straight games. Whitworth has a chance to become the only player in LSU history to start and play in 50 games in a career.
Taking Note On The Tigers Since 2000
Here is a look at some notable trends for LSU during the 67 games its played since 2000 … LSU is 41-4 when leading at halftime and 38-4 when leading after three quarters … The Tigers are 47-5 when scoring 20 or more points and 41-2 when scoring at least 25 points in a game … On the other hand, the Tigers are 3-12 when failing to reach the 20-point mark … LSU is 15-5 in games decided by 7 points or less and 7-3 in games decided by 3 points or less … LSU is 34-2 when holding opponents to fewer than 100 team rushing yards and the Tigers are 22-1 when having a player rush for 100 yards.
Tiger Field Goal Streak At Eight Straight
LSU will bring a streak of having successfully converted 8 straight field goals into the Vanderbilt contest. LSU capped last year by connecting on its last 5 field goals and have since gone 3-for-3 this year. The 8 straight field goals is the longest streak since John Corbello connected on eight straight over a 2-season span. Corbello made the final 3 attempts in 2001 and then kicked 5 straight to open the 2002 season. Of LSU’s 8 straight field goals, 6 have been converted by Chris Jackson and 2 by Colt David.