by www.LSUsports.net, LSU Sports Interactive
BATON ROUGE -- The best cure for a team coming off a disappointing loss is the opportunity to play again and that’s what will finally take place on Saturday when 15th-ranked LSU hosts Tulane in a non-conference contest in Tiger Stadium.
Kickoff for the Tigers and Green Wave is scheduled for 7 p.m. The game will be televised on TigerVision, LSU’s in-house pay-per-view network. LSU brings a streak of having won 16 straight games against the Green Wave into Saturday’s contest, a stretch that dates back to the 1983 season.
It will also be the 97th meeting between the two teams, who at one point in time met every year from 1911 to 1994. The teams took a break in the series following the 1994 game before playing in Tiger Stadium in 2001. This is the third consecutive year the teams have played. Last year, a sluggish LSU team rebounded from a 10-9 halftime advantage to win, 34-9, in New Orleans.
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GameDay Info LSU vs. Tulane GameTime Temp: 64° Times of Interest Noon 4 p.m. 4:15 p.m. 4:30 4:50 p.m. 5 p.m. 5:30 p.m. 5:40 p.m 6:38:15 p.m. 6:39 p.m. 6:42 p.m. 6:46 p.m. 6:50 p.m. 6:56 p.m. 6:56:45 p.m. 7 p.m. 2 a.m. Pre-Game Presentations End of First Quarter Halftime Guest Captains |
But instead of dwelling on what could have been, the Tigers have gone back to work and had a productive week of practices.
“I like what I’ve seen on the practice field this week,” LSU coach Les Miles said. “The guys have come to work this week and they’ve worked hard. I have liked our approach; there’s been great attention to detail and urgency.”
Tulane brings a 2-5 overall mark into the game after last week’s 42-17 setback to Rice in New Orleans. After playing both Alabama and East Carolina to the wire during the first two weeks of the season, Tulane has struggled of late, losing three straight.
The Green Wave will also be without the services of their top offensive threat for the remainder of the season as running back Andre Anderson is out with an injury.
One of the keys for the Tigers on Saturday against Tulane will be their ability to put together four solid quarters of football, something that has eluded LSU for most of the year.
“Right now, the process that we are going through is to be the best team that we can be this Saturday,” Miles said. “That process hasn’t changed and it won’t change, no matter the opponent.
“It’s truthfully a part of the process to play hard for all four quarters no matter who is in the game. The truth of the matter is that we need to play well for victory and we need to play well for four quarters.”
Offensively, the Tigers will continue to rely on the rushing of Charles Scott, who ranks No. 3 in the SEC with 110 yards per game, and the passing of Jarrett Lee, who is coming off a career-best 289 yards and three TDs against Georgia. Lee also threw a career-high three interceptions against the Bulldogs.
Still with a redshirt freshman starting at quarterback, LSU is No. 3 in the SEC in scoring offense (32.1 points per game), No. 2 in total offense (412.9 ypg) and No. 3 in both rushing (179.7 ypg) and passing (233.1 ypg) offense. LSU is the only team in the SEC to rate among the top three in the league in both rushing and passing offense.
Defensively, the Tigers go into the Tulane game allowing 316.4 yards and 25.9 points per game.
The LSU defense will be challenged by a Green Wave offense that is scoring right at 20 points per game with just over 400 yards per contest – 153 rushing, 251 passing. With the loss of Anderson (864 rushing yards, 7 TDs), the Green Wave’s top offensive threat is that of quarterback Kevin Moore, who has thrown for 1,476 yards and seven scores.
Saturday’s game also takes on another meaning as the Tigers will be looking to avoid back-to-back losses for the first time since the 2002 season when LSU dropped consecutive games to Arkansas and Texas. LSU is 7-0 under Miles following a loss.
A win over Tulane will also give the Tigers win No. 6, making LSU bowl eligible for a school-record ninth straight year.
