BATON ROUGE — The wake up call for LSU will come early on Saturday as ninth-ranked Tigers face Mississippi State in a contest between two programs that have been on opposite ends of the conference standings over the last five years.
The Tigers and Bulldogs kick off at 11:30 a.m. in a sold out Tiger Stadium. The game will be televised to a regional audience by Lincoln Financial Sports (formerly Jefferson Pilot). The contest also serves as this year’s “Gold Game” for LSU and fans are encouraged to wear gold to Tiger Stadium on Saturday.
LSU goes into the game with a 3-1 overall mark following last week’s 49-7 win over Tulane in Tiger Stadium. LSU is 0-1 in league play. Mississippi State picked up its first conference win last week, beating UAB, 16-10, in overtime. The Bulldogs are 1-3 overall and 0-2 in conference action.
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Saturday’s contest pits two teams who haven’t had much in common in terms of football in recent history as the Tigers have won 54 games since the 2001 season, while the Bulldogs have posted just 15 victories over that span. In addition, LSU has outscored State, 202-26, in the last five games between the teams, including a 51-0 victory in 2004 in Tiger Stadium. Last year, the Tigers beat the Bulldogs, 37-7, in Starkville.
However, LSU coach Les Miles is quick to warn that his team is not looking past Mississippi State.
“Our football team has watched film on Mississippi State and it will not take a lot of convincing for them to be ready for this game,” Miles said. “They are coming off an overtime win over UAB and that’s makes them dangerous. They have played better each week and we are expecting their best effort on Saturday.
“When you watch the film on them, you can see that they are very talented. They have an opportunity, when they put it together, to be a very dangerous team.”
Miles said he has been impressed with the Mississippi State defense, in particular, their front seven, which he considers one of the best in the league.
Weather (Forecast)
GameTime Conditions: Sunny
GameTime Temp: 80?
High: 89?
Low: 66?
Chance of Rain: 20%
Humidity: 58%
Wind: S @ 4 mph
Sunset: 6:51 p.m. CT
Event Schedule for Saturday, Sept. 30
9:25 a.m. LSU team walks down hill to locker room
9:30 a.m. LSU GameDay Pregame Radio Show begins in Tiger One Village
9:30 a.m. All Gates to Tiger Stadium open
9:45 a.m. Mike the Tiger loaded and brought to Gate 11
10 a.m. LSU band marches down hill to Tiger Stadium
11:33 a.m. Kickoff: LSU vs. Mississippi State (Lincoln Financial Sports)
Pregame:
Miss LSU Rachel Smith recognized
Station 11 Firefighters recognized (the fire station that put out the fire in Tiger Stadium in August)
1st Quarter Break:
Seimone Augustus honored
Halftime:
LSU Golden Band from Tigerland performs
Guest Captains:
Sol Graves
White Graves
Tyler LaFauci
George Bevan
Norman Stevens
“They are very talented up front,” Miles said. “They have a big and strong defensive line and they are backed up with some very talented linebackers. They will present some challenges for us.”
One of the keys for the Tigers in its three home victories this year has been getting off to a quick start. Last week, LSU scored touchdowns on four of its first five possessions on its way to a 28-0 halftime lead over Tulane. That is something that Miles is looking for again on Saturday against the Bulldogs.
“I am somewhat concerned about an early start,” Miles said earlier this week. “We are kind of used to playing a game that starts at seven o’clock. I want to make sure that our guys are up and running to start that morning. I enjoy these fast starts. That is how our team is meant to play. I want to make sure that the cobwebs are out early in the morning and that they are ready to go.”
A key to LSU’s quick starts has been the player of quarterback JaMarcus Russell, who ranks among the nation leaders in passing with a 169.5 rating. In four games, Russell has completed 63 of 95 passes for 916 yards and seven touchdowns. He’s only thrown one interception this year.
Russell has been the catalyst for an LSU offense that ranks first in the conference in scoring at 35.5 points per game and second in the league in total offense with 403.5 yards per contest. The Tigers have outscored their opponents 142-20 this year and go into the State contest having scored on 41 consecutive trips inside the redzone.
LSU’s running game got a boost last week when true freshman Charles Scott rushed for a career-best 101 yards on 15 carries against Tulane. It marked the first this year that LSU had a running back reach the 100-yard mark. Scott is expected to share carries on Saturday with starter Justin Vincent and Alley Broussard.
When the Tigers aren’t running the ball, Russell has a trio of receivers to go to led by seniors Craig Davis and Dwayne Bowe. Davis leads the Tigers with 19 catches for 293 yards, while Bowe has 16 receptions for 258 yards and two touchdowns. The third receiver in the fleet is junior Early Doucet, who is coming off a three-touchdown performance last week. For the year, Doucet has caught 13 balls for 201 yards and three scores.
While the Tigers offensive has been explosive, LSU’s defense has been even more dominating, holding opponents to only 20 points through the first four games of the season. The Tigers are ranked No. 1 in the nation in scoring (5.0 points per game) and pass efficiency defense (61.28 rating) and they are No. 2 in total defense (185.2 yards per game) and pass defense (102.2 yards per game).
LSU has allowed only two touchdowns this year and the Tigers have held three of their first four opponents to fewer than 200 yards of offense.
“I think our defense is continuing to play at a high level of intensity snap after snap,” Miles said. “And, that’s what it takes to be successful in this league.”
The Tiger defense is led by junior defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey, who has 21 tackles and six tackles for losses to his credit, along with linebacker Darry Beckwith. Beckwith leads the Tigers with 27 tackles and three tackles for losses.