Tigers battle through last stretch of season

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By Jeffrey Hathorn

The LSU Tigers (8-2) walked out of Tiger Stadium Saturday night with an ugly 24-16 win over Louisiana Tech (3-7). Behind Jarrett Lee at quarterback, LSU's offense totaled 246 yards of offense. Lee finished the night 7 of 22, 105 yards and a touchdown. Lee was booed by the Tiger "faithful" throughout the game.

Head Coach Les Miles wasn't too happy with his team's performance saying, "I think we did not play sharp certainly. I didn't like the way the defense started the game. Offensively, we had some opportunities to make some big plays and didn't."

Tiger fans had flashbacks to last year's come from behind Troy game as this time around Louisiana Tech took the lead going into the half and the Tigers battled back for the victory. Keiland Williams filled in for the injured Charles Scott well running the ball efficiently in the second half as he carried the offense to their eighth win of the year. Williams finished with 116 yards and two scores.

"We just wanted to run down there, push it down their throat and get in the end zone," said Williams.

LSU travels to Oxford next weekend to face the Rebels of Ole Miss, who were predicted by many sports writers to win the Western Division in 2009.

Ole Miss has been inconsistent this year, but is coming off a big win against Tennessee in which running back Dexter McCluster rushed for a school-record 282 yards. Quarterback Jevan Snead has not reached expectations placed on him before the season, but a big win against a team like LSU can quickly change that.

LSU will need to play four quarters of inspired football in order to win. Running backs Keiland Williams and Stevan Ridley will be key factors for the LSU offense if the Tigers want to come away with their ninth win of the season. Les Miles expects Jordan Jefferson to start, but will rely heavily on the run game to take some pressure off Jefferson as he shakes off some of the rust.

Prediction:

LSU- 24 Ole Miss-21

The Rest of the Way

The SEC Western Division was clinched with Alabama's victory over LSU on November 7th. A championship is not in the cards for the Tigers, which is disappointing, but the season is not over. LSU has two rivals left on the schedule, Ole Miss and Arkansas, and if LSU wins both of those games, they will be playing on New Year's Day.

In 2008, the team and fans let the Alabama loss ruin the rest of the regular season. That cannot happen this year. Les Miles and the coaching staff need to keep the players focused and inspired to play football and they will. If LSU folds their tents and allow Ole Miss and Arkansas to have their way with them, that is a sign of a declining program.

LSU should finish the regular season 10-2. A BCS bowl is a possibility, but a very small one. The Tigers will most likely end up in Orlando for the Capital One Bowl playing Penn State or possibly the Cotton Bowl versus Oklahoma State. Both of these would make for a great match up and also be big for recruiting in both of those talent filled states.

Tiger fans, the season is not over. Get rested up this weekend and ready to tailgate and cheer on the Fighting Tigers when the LSU returns home to play Arkansas on November 28th.

Originally Published: Issue 824 - November 18, 2009

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