“Sure things” don’t exist in sports — especially college sports.But LSU victories in night home football games the last few years have become quite routine.LSU only played four night games in Tiger Stadium in 2008 — a time and place where the Tigers usually play their best. LSU has been dominant in Saturday night home games and has won 30 consecutive Saturday night games in Death Valley since 2002.”The night at Tiger Stadium brings an enthusiasm on game day that gets our fans in great form starting that evening,” said LSU coach Les Miles, who is 19-0 in Tiger Stadium on Saturday nights. “There’s something special about that night sky in Tiger Stadium, too, that our team notices.”After a 3-0 start in the Southeastern Conference in 2008, the Vanderbilt football team finished its season losing four of its last five conference games.After a 45-0 victory against Western Carolina in its season opener, Vanderbilt (1-0) hopes to have more SEC road success when it travels to Baton Rouge to play No. 11 LSU (1-0) in Tiger Stadium on Saturday at 6 p.m.The last time Vandy played in Death Valley was Saturday, Oct. 30, 2004, when the Tigers beat the Commodores, 24-7.”A lot of our guys have played in big stadiums,” said Vanderbilt coach Bobby Johnson. “It’s going to be tough like all the rest of them are. What makes those stadiums so hard is the players that are playing in them.”LSU also had a quick start in 2008 and was 2-0 in the SEC before getting trounced by Florida in Gainesville, 51-21. The Tigers continued to fall, losing their last four SEC games and finishing 3-5 in the conference.But after a 31-23 victory against Washington last weekend, LSU looks like it may be ready for Saturday night in Tiger Stadium.”You don’t want somebody to come in your own backyard and beat you, especially an SEC team,” said LSU senior running back Charles Scott. “It’s a sense of pride.”Considering the fierceness of the crowd, LSU has been well documented as one of the toughest places for an opponent to play a college football game. With 92,000 screaming fans, it’s often difficult for LSU’s opponents to get in an offensive rhythm.”There’s no greater obstacle for an opponent than a loud, aggressive home-field advantage for the LSU Tigers,” Miles said. “There have been times that I’ve been here where the opponent cannot get the snap.”LSU senior linebacker Perry Riley said he gets disappointed when he finds out the Tigers have to play a day game at home because of TV contracts.”I feel like I play better in night games, and Tiger Stadium is more loud for night games,” Riley said. “We all live for playing on Saturday night in Tiger Stadium — there’s nothing like it.”The Tigers’ record hasn’t been too shabby at home during the day either. Despite three home losses last season, LSU has won 24 of its last 28 games at home.Vanderbilt will rely on freshman running backs Warren Norman and Zac Stacy, who combined for 238 yards and three touchdowns against Western Carolina.The Commodores totaled 620 yards of offense in the game, including 433 yards on the ground, while only allowing 115 total yards in the shutout victory.”Trying to consistently move the ball against LSU is really tough to do,” Johnson said. “Their linebacker corps is really mobile, and their secondary is really good.” LSU’s defense struggled in the season opener, allowing Washington to gain 478 yards of total offense, including 157 yards on the ground.Sophomore quarterback Jordan Jefferson and junior wide receiver Terrance Toliver provided the firepower for the Tigers’ offense against Washington. The two connected for 117 yards and two touchdowns in the victory.Jefferson will get his first start in Tiger Stadium on Saturday night after starting his first three games on the road.————Contact Jarred LeBlanc at [email protected]