BATON ROUGE – LSU will look to keep its hopes for a berth in a BCS bowl alive on Saturday as the fifth-ranked Tigers host Ole Miss in the home finale.
Kickoff for the Tigers and the Rebels is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. and the game will be televised nationally on CBS. LSU brings a 9-1 overall mark and a 5-1 league record into the game. Ole Miss, who must win its final two games to become bowl-eligible, is 4-6 overall and 1-5 in conference play.
Saturday’s game will also serve as an opportunity for the Tigers to put an end to Ole Miss’ two-game winning streak in the series. Last year, Ole Miss beat the Tigers, 25-23, in Oxford after a last-minute LSU rally fell short. The Rebels beat LSU, 31-13, in their last visit to Tiger Stadium in 2008.
“We have a really good week of practice,” LSU coach Les Miles said following Wednesday’s workout. “The thing that I really like about this team is how they approach practice. They bring a great work ethic to the field each day. They come to practice with the goal of getting better each time they take the field.”
While the outcome of LSU’s next final two games will determine where the Tigers will spend bowl season, Miles said his team is focused strictly on Ole Miss.
“It is a long way away to be honest with you,” Miles said of LSU’s possible bowl destinations. “I don’t want to daydream about what will be eventualities, I think everyone in this room will like in some way, shape or form to play for a championship. How that happens it is not clear right now, so all we are trying to do is take them one at a time and not lose focus on that. Ole Miss has certainly given us great reason to not do that.”
One of the keys to Saturday’s game will be defending Ole Miss quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, the transfer from Oregon who can make plays with both his arm and his feet. Masoli has thrown for 1,601 yards and 12 touchdowns and added another 468 rushing yards with four scores.
“He has a strong arm, he is very fast and he is tougher than nails,” Miles said of Masoli. “He’s very competitive and a tremendous quarterback. We are going to have to do a good job of defending him.”
The Tigers will defend him and the rest of the Rebel offense with a unit that leads the SEC in total defense (273.6) and passing defense (148.6) while ranking No. 2 in the league in scoring allowing just 14.6 points per game.
Offensively, Miles said the Tigers will get the services of right guard Will Blackwell back on Saturday. Blackwell has been out of action since breaking his ankle on the first offensive play of the season against North Carolina. Blackwell, who isn’t expected to start, will rotate at right guard with T-Bob Hebert.
Miles said that starting right tackle Alex Hurst has been limited at practice and his status for Saturday in uncertain. If Hurst can’t go, Miles said Greg Shaw and Chris Faulk will see action at the position.
The Tigers will have a light workout on Thursday followed by a walk-through on Friday afternoon.