It's GameDay: National Spotlight on Baton Rouge
BATON ROUGE — It’s been nearly 50 years since a pair of top five teams have squared off in Tiger Stadium. That will change on Saturday night when fourth-ranked LSU hosts top-ranked Florida in one of the most anticipated football games in school history.
Kickoff for the Tigers and Gators is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. in a sold out Tiger Stadium. The game will be televised to a national prime time audience for the third straight year by CBS. LSU brings a 5-0 overall mark and a 3-0 league record into the game, while the Gators are 4-0 overall and 2-0 in conference action.
The last time two teams ranked in the top five met in Tiger Stadium came on Oct. 31, 1959 when top-ranked LSU used Billy Cannon’s infamous punt return to beat No. 3 Ole Miss, 7-3. Since then, many games have been played in Death Valley, none of which had the credentials like Saturday’s contest.
The stage was set for the top five clash a week ago when LSU scored with less than a minute left to beat Georgia, 20-13, in Athens. Florida was idle last week and the Gators haven’t played since a 41-7 win over Kentucky two weeks ago.
A year ago, Florida handed the Tigers a 51-21 defeat in Gainesville on its way to winning the BCS National Championship. A year earlier in Tiger Stadium, LSU, behind the running of Jacob Hester, overcame a 10-point fourth quarter deficit to beat the Gators, 28-24, on its way to claiming the national title that year.
One of the biggest questions surrounding Saturday’s game is that of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow and whether he will play against the Tigers, two weeks after suffering a concussion in the win over Kentucky. Tebow, who has helped lead Florida to a pair of national titles, has practiced this week but his status won’t be known until game. Still, with Tebow’s status up in the air, the Tigers have used this week to prepare for a very good Florida offense, with or without Tebow.
GameDay Info
LSU vs. Florida
Saturday, Oct. 10
7 p.m. CDT
CBS
GameDay Forecast
High: 76?
Gametime: 73?
Low: 67?
Rain: 50% chance
Humidity: 80%
Wind: NNW 6 mph
Forecast
Sunrise: 7:04 a.m. CT
Sunset: 6:39 p.m. CT
Kickoff: 7:10 p.m. CT
Times of Interest
9 a.m.
– ESPN’s College GameDay live from the Parade Grounds
– LSU SportShop opens
Noon
LSU Ticket Office opens
Kids Zone presented by Times Grill opens on South lawn of Tiger Stadium
1 p.m.
Bubba Plauche’ opens for Cowboy Mouth at Zatarain’s Tiger One Village (in front of PMAC)
4 p.m.
Club level and Suites open at Tiger Stadium
LSU At the Game Programs on Sale in and around Tiger Stadium. Read More
Live Sports Radios on Sale in and around Tiger Stadium. Read More
4:15 p.m.
LSU Student gates open at Tiger Stadium
4:30 p.m.
All remaining gates open at Tiger Stadium
4:55 p.m.
LSU walks down “Victory Hill”
5 p.m.
LSU Game Day presented by CST radio show at Zatarain’s Tiger One Village
- Listen Live
- Watch Pregame Stadium Video (ends prior to kickoff per SEC rules)
5:15 p.m.
Mike VI and LSU band march down Victory Hill
6:40 p.m.
Mike the Tiger and LSU Cheerleaders field parade
6:45 p.m.
Watch Live Video of the LSU Sports Radio Network broadcast team in the Geaux Zone (no live game action, per SEC rules)
6:52 p.m.
Guest Captains (see list below) and Game Sponsor (Capital One Bank) Presentations
6:55 p.m.
Golden Band from Tigerland takes the field for pregame performance
6:59 p.m.
Alma Mater, National Anthem and flyover
7:06 p.m.
LSU takes the field
7:06:45 p.m.
Florida takes the field
7:10 p.m.
Kickoff: LSU vs. Florida
- Follow Live Stats on LSUsports.net/livestats.
Presentations:
End of First Quarter
Tommy Casanova Jersey Retirement
Halftime
TAF Foundation of Champions
LSU Golden Band from Tigerland performs
Guest Captains
David Strange
George Henriquez
Odell Beckham
Sheddrick Wilson
LSU At the Game programs are available on campus three hours prior to game time and online while supplies last.
“We’re preparing for the Florida offense,” LSU coach Les Miles said. “There’s a personality there. We recognize the quarterback can be a different guy, but he’ll probably be asked to do very similar things. They have some very talented guys.
“I don’t think anyone would lead us to say who is starting. Speculation is what we’re operating with. I want for them to be healthy, and I want for Tim (Tebow) to return to football quickly. If appropriate, we’d like to play against the best, and certainly he is. As we prepare for a very good Florida offense, a great defense and special teams, that is just one of the worries.”
Against the Gators, the Tigers will face offensive and defensive units that lead the SEC in total numerous categories, including scoring and total yards. Florida’s offense is averaging 45.5 points and 526.2 yards per game. The Gators are also first in the SEC in rushing yards with 307.5 per contest.
Defensively, the Gators are limiting opponents to just 7.2 points and 212.8 yards per game. Their pass defense is first in the SEC (120.0 yards per game) and they are second in the league in rushing defense (92.8 yards per game).
“There’s a whole defense that no one is talking about that’s playing really well,” Miles said in regards to all of the attention being paid to the quarterback position this week. “Our competition is more than just the quarterback. Across the board they are a very talented football team.
“A big thing is their speed, and they are a veteran group now. They know how to play and it shows. We think (Florida’s defense) is very talented and athletic.”
The Tigers will attack the Florida defense with an offense that looked to have regained some of its confidence in last week’s win over Georgia. The Tigers used a pair of late fourth quarter drives to come-from-behind to beat Georgia. The game-clincher came when Charles Scott ran 33-yards for a score with just under a minute left.
Scott had his best game of the year, rushing for 95 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries. As a unit, LSU put up 368 total yards, 212 of which came through the air.
Sophomore Jordan Jefferson continues to lead LSU’s offensive attack, connecting on 80-of-128 passes for 920 yards, seven touchdowns and just two interceptions. Jefferson’s top targets have been Terrance Toliver (23 for 342, 2 TDs), Brandon LaFell (23 for 282 and 5 TDs) and Richard Dickson (11 for 95).
Defensively, LSU will attempt to slow down the Gator offense with a group who allowed just one first down and 49 total yards in the first half against Georgia last week. The Tigers limited Georgia to 274 total yards, with just 45 of those coming on the ground.
LSU’s trio of linebackers ? Harry Coleman, Kelvin Sheppard, and Perry Riley ? are the teams top three tacklers with Coleman leading the group with 34. Sheppard and Riley have 31 and 30 tackles respectively.
The Tigers have also gotten solid production from its secondary. Cornerback Patrick Peterson ranks second in the SEC in passes defended with seven, while safety Chad Jones has performed well in the defensive backfield, registering 23 tackles and a pair of interceptions.
“Against a very talented Florida team, we want to play well,” Miles said. “The greatest compliment we can give our opponent is certainly to play our best football. I didn’t think we did that last year; we want to play our best football this year.
“I know that it becomes easy to categorize No.1 versus No. 4, and that’s a nice way to bill it. It’s two very talented football teams playing for a victory; a victory that is important to the goals of each team as we go forward.”