SEC Power Rankings: Alabama, Texas A&M, Florida, South Carolina and Georgia All in the Title Hunt
By Ben Nielsen
Nov 23, 2012; Fayetteville, AR, USA; A LSU Tigers helmet on the sidelines during a game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Donald W. Reynolds Stadium. LSU defeated Arkansas 20-13. Mandatory Credit: Beth Hall-USA TODAY Sports
6. LSU Tigers
Last Season: 10-3 (6-2)
Key Addition:
Key Word: Fortune
Outlook:
Offense shouldn’t be a problem. Zach Mettenberger is back at quarterback. Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr. are back to receive passes from Mettenberger. Their 2013 new additions include receivers Travin Dural and Quantavius Leslie, and tight end Logan Stokes.
The issue may be the defense. Barkevious Mingo, gone. Kevin Minter, gone. Eric Reid, gone. Sam Montgomery, gone. Tharold Simon, gone. Bennie Logan, gone. In total, LSU lost seven players from last year’s defense to the NFL. And while LSU can certainly replace that talent with the way they recruit, it is unknown how quickly they will come together as a unit.
And they are going to have to come together quickly. LSU starts the season with a difficult game against TCU, the first of five top 20 games on their schedule. In fact, four of the five ranked teams they will play are ranked in the preseason top 10. Add in a tough road game at Ole Miss and LSU looks like they are heading for a record that would appear to be an underachievement. That’s an insanely tough schedule.
This team is really good, but their record may not reflect that at the end of the season.