LSU Tigers: Breaking Down the 2013 Schedule
LSU seems to have one of the best teams in the nation year after year and the 2013 season is no different. Les Miles doesn’t rebuild as the head coach, he just reloads talent.
Being part of the best conference in college football, the Tigers will look to surprise some people – with Alabama being the favorite – and make a strong push for the SEC title. The winner of the SEC title has a really good chance of playing for a national title and most of the time, they win the title. In fact, the past seven NCAA title games have seen an SEC team win and this year could easily make it eight in a row.
The Tigers haven’t won a national title since 2007 and have been to one since then. It’s safe to say that Miles is itching for another as he is the proud owner of an 85-21 record at LSU, hoping to come close to his 100th win this season to go along with the coveted championship trophy.
Zach Mettenberger is the returning quarterback and could use some improvement after a season with just over 2,600 yards, 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Offense wasn’t exactly the Tigers’ bread and butter in 2012, but the defense made up for that, ensuring that the 59th ranked national scoring offense still finished with a 10-3 record.
Running back Jeremy Hill will be a huge help in the backfield to go along with wide outs Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr. – this team will have a wealth of offensive weapons. The defense will be stellar once again although they did lose six key starters.
Let’s see how the 2013 schedule looks for the Tigers.
Connor Muldowney is a columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @Connormuldowney, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
Aug. 31: TCU
TCU's got one of the better defenses in the Big 12 and this is one heck of an opening game for LSU. It will be interesting to see if returning quarterback Casey Pachall will live up to the hype he left behind when he left the Horned Frogs early in 2012 to attend substance abuse rehab.
PREDICTION: TCU 17, LSU 24
Sept. 7: UAB
The Tigers will be relieved to see an easy opponent on the schedule in their tumultuous 2013 campaign. The way its looking right now, they will likely have three or four easy wins and eight or nine tough games. It's hard to say how they will finish the season, but I can assure you, UAB will be one win on that schedule.
PREDICTION: UAB 3, LSU 38
Sept. 14: Kent State
Kent State was a surprise team last season with an 11-3 record and could give the Tigers a run for their money, but without head coach Darrell Hazell, this team will have no time to really gel together before facing LSU.
PREDICTION: Kent State 14, LSU 34
Sept. 21: Auburn
Just a few years removed from their national title victory, the Auburn Tigers have quickly become one of the SEC's bottom-dwellers. Ridding themselves of Gene Chizik was a step in the right direction, but without a legitimate starting quarterback, the Tigers will need to figure something out if they want to score any points against LSU.
PREDICTION: Auburn 10, LSU 27
Sept. 28: at Georgia
In one of the best early-season clashes between two top teams, LSU will invade Athens with intentions of pulling off a big upset. It's hard to call a match-up between two top squads an upset, but when one is at home and is more of a complete team than the other, it fits the description of an upset. I'm just not sure if LSU has the offensive firepower to pull this one off.
PREDICTION: LSU 27, Georgia 33
Oct. 5: at Mississippi State
Tyler Russell will be huge for Mississippi State, but for a team that finished fourth in the SEC West last year, they stand little chance of defeating the Tigers at home. While home-field advantage is huge, this could just be too much defense for the Bulldogs to handle.
PREDICTION: LSU 23, Mississippi State 12
Oct. 12: Florida
Two poor offenses collide in this mid-October match-up. I would say the difference will be the defense, but they are both nearly identical and ruthless, but the home-field advantage will loom large. Look out for a low-scoring affair with Mettenberger and Jeff Driskell as the pace-makers. Two sub-par quarterbacks make for a boring game in Baton Rouge.
PREDICTION: Florida 14, LSU 16
Oct. 19: at Ole Miss
Hugh Freeze has the Rebels back on the map in 2013 with a top-five recruiting class and a glimmer of hope for the first time in recent memory. He finished the 2012 season with a 7-6 record and looks forward to the 2013 season with 15 returning starters and some future stars in incoming freshman wide out Laquon Treadwell and defensive lineman Robert Nkemdiche.
PREDICTION: LSU 20, Ole Miss 24
Oct. 26: Furman
Ever heard of Furman? Neither have many other football fans as this FCS team will be no match for the tenacious Tiger defense -- and hey, they might be able to score some points on Furman as well.
PREDICTION: Furman 0, LSU 34
Nov. 9: at Alabama
This was the match-up for the ages a couple seasons ago when the two teams provided one of the best defensive games ever witnessed in college football. Great defense usually means lackluster offense, but the Crimson Tide will have a bit stronger of an offense with AJ McCarron at quarterback.
PREDICTION: LSU 17, Alabama 21
Nov. 23: Texas A&M
All I am going to say on this one is that Johnny Manziel has gone into enemy territory and stolen a win before in the rugged SEC. He's one more year of experience under his belt and he's ready to repeat history -- against a different top SEC opponent.
PREDICTION: Texas A&M 28, LSU 20
Nov. 29: Arkansas
The Tigers would kill for an easy game late in the season and the Arkansas Razorbacks are as good as they will get. However, the Razorbacks are no cake-walk and the Tigers have come six rough games of their last seven. A let-down could be in the cards -- or maybe not.
PREDICTION: Arkansas 15, LSU 30
The LSU Tigers finish 8-4 and once again fall short of an SEC title.
