Saturday morning, thousands of purple and gold clad coeds will gather on the Parade Ground in the center of LSU’s campus to see a man put on a furry mascot head.That can only mean one thing — ESPN’s College GameDay is going to be in Baton Rouge again.The last time the show came to Baton Rouge was last Nov. when then-No. 1 Alabama visited, and played LSU to a very memorable 27-21 overtime defeat.This trip for the show features another No. 1 team coming to pay coach Les Miles’ boys a visit.No. 1 Florida (4-0, 2-0) is travelling to Death Valley to take on No. 4 LSU (5-0,3-0) in what is being hyped as one of the biggest games of the young millenium, and the ESPN crew will be here bright and early to provide college football fanatics with all the news, features and opinions they could ever need.The Tigers have won their past two games against Mississippi State and Georgia by a combined 11 points, and trailed in one with less than one minute left to play.Their stats have not been impressive , but they’ve still found ways to grind out wins.This might be the week where living life on the edge could catch up and cost them.They’ve still not had a rusher rush for more than 100 yards, but quarterback Jordan Jefferson has been pretty good, passing for 920 yards and 7 touchdowns with only two interceptions.On the flip side, Florida is dealing with the health concerns of senior quarterback Tim Tebow.Tebow suffered a Grade II concussion in the third quarter of Florida’s 41-7 win at Kentucky nearly two weeks ago, and as of Tuesday was only practicing on a limited basis.Tebow is a polarizing figure in the college football spectrum, and the popular sentiment around LSU is one of disdain.Aside from former LSU coach Nick Saban who currently coaches at Alabama, there’s probably not a man more hated on campus.Kids around here flat-out hate the guy, and many want to see him take more big hits against LSU.ESPN has definitely chosen the best weekend of the year to be here.This is the first major night game to take place in Tiger Stadium in more than a year, and in Baton Rouge, players and fans alike live for these night games.The Tigers haven’t lost a night game at home in 32 contests and LSU’s fans are absolutely pumped up for the contest, and they’ve been letting Florida know — personally.Somehow phone numbers of several Gators have spread across campus and to the phones of Tiger fans everywhere.Senior wide receiver Riley Cooper, coach Urban Meyer and sophomore quarterback John Brantley, among others have all had to experience a barrage of texts and calls from the Tiger faithful.It’s another way for fans to get into the heads of the opposing team, and they’ve been doing it for years — not that its something that should be condoned.in 2007, LSU fans did the same thing to Tebow. He was harassed all week leading up to the game, and he eventually had to change his number after the contest.He acknowledged the calls in a touchdown celebration aimed at the student section, for which he was eventually flagged.The attendance record of 93,039 is expected to be challenged, and the fans are being encouraged to wear gold. They’re going to bring the noise Saturday night.Follow College GameDay on Twitter: GameDayFootballwww.collegegameday.com
Babbling Brooks: Tigers, Gators clash in epic Saturday night showdown
October 6, 2009