Phil Steele is running his top 30 countdown at his blog. The first SEC team making an appearance is #26 LSU. If you’re a LSU fan, his forecast contains a pretty sobering description of a program that’s been in steady decline.
See how this reads to you:
An angry LSU squad plastered Miami 40-3 in the Peach Bowl. 2005 was the first time LSU defeated Aub, Ala and Fla all in the same season. They had 11 ret st’rs in ’06 and it was the first Tiger team since 1982 to beat two Top 10 foes on the road in the same year. In the friendly confines of the Sugar Bowl, they destroyed ND 41-14 and finished #3. In ’07 they were #2 in the preseason and the only FBS team not to lose a game in regulation (both losses 3OT)…
After LSU beat #14 Tenn 21-14 in the SEC Title game, they whipped Ohio St 38-24 for a 2nd National Title in 5 years. Some negative factors heading into ’08 were that they benefitted from +20 in TO’s and 2 net close wins. They had just 12 ret st’rs (3rd fewest SEC) and lost 29 pts in my NFL Draft Day Party Hangover (pg 308). While LSU was bowl eligible for a school record 9th straight season, it was an up and down season. LSU had the most losses ever by a defending BCS National Champ (5). At 7-5 and off 5 losses in their final 8, LSU was an underdog to GT but thrashed them 38-3 in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. After outgaining SEC foes by 132.2 and 81 ypg in ’06 and ’07, LSU went 3-5 in SEC play (-3.7 ypg)…
LSU had less yds than their opp’s in 4 of their 9 wins last year. Last year they had fortunate ypp’s on both offense and defense (see pg 299) and despite their 5-3 SEC record were -33.4 ypg (4th worst) in SEC play and on the season were outgained by an avg of 328-305.
[This year] LSU has just 10 ret st’rs (tied 2nd fewest) and draws N Car and W Virg in their non-conf slate and has road trips to Florida, Auburn and Ark in the SEC.
He predicts the Tigers fail to match last year’s nine-win total.
Get The Picture 
I wonder how much of LSU’s decline is due to only signing 13 kids in ’05?
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Anything I can do to help, Les?
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Step aside Marc, I’ll take care of this.
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Hey, you two.For goodness sake try to not be so obvious! Didn’t you learn anything from last season?
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Les seems to be sitting on a hot seat with a weak hand…
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He’s definitely right there with Richt on the “bubble,” whatever that is.
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Not that I have anything against LSU, but they’re gonna have it rough this year. Tied with Vandy for fewest returning starters, offense was an absolute disaster in ’09 and still has lots of questions to answer, particularly on the line. 6-6 is a very real possibility (and would probably get Miles fired); 5-7 is not out of the question.
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LSU has had a similar fall off In performance to UGA Chavis will help but there are plenty of questions to be answered. They have continued to recruit well but performance has been sub par since saban-coached players graduated. I don’t see this ending well for Miles.
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Hell, Chavis is part of the problem. His D is part of the reason Fulmer got the ax at UT. He may accomplish the same at LSU. I am sure glad he didn’t end up as the Dawgs’ DC.
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They have no QB whatsoever to lead them anywhere. Lee is a headcase and JJ has been a disappointment for his entire time at LSU. He doesn’t work hard off-the-field and has Russell-syndrome on-the-field with mistakes
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Miles is gonna have to make chicken salad out of chicken shit.
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LSU only signed 13 In 05. How about the Dawgs.?.
They only had 12 that made it on to campus in 05.
A lot of the Dawg’s problems since 05 can be directly attributed to that. We have not had a strong senior class since then. That finally changes in 2010 & 2011. We are finally back to full strength with senior leadership back to where we need it to be.
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What I can gain from all of that is that Tech still sucks. That Peach Bowl could have been 64-3. How we lost to that bunch of sissy-fighting women is still unbelievable.
But don’t tell Fish Fry Johnson that the Georgia game means something. That can be our little secret.
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