No. 12 LSU may be college football’s most maligned team that has yet to lose a game.
 
But the smattering of boos heard during last week’s win against West Virginia pales in comparison to Tennessee coach Derek Dooley’s assessment of the Volunteers (2-2, 0-1).
 
“I’m not sure there’s anything we don’t need improvement on,” he said. “We’ve really not been good at anything — running, throwing, stopping the run, stopping the throws — so we’ve got a lot of work to do.”
 
The matchup between the two teams Saturday will serve as a reunion of sorts for Dooley, who won a national championship with LSU as an assistant in 2003, as well as for LSU defensive coordinator John Chavis, who helped Tennessee to the 1998 BCS National Championship.
 
But the only reunion LSU (4-0, 2-0) is interested in seeing is Jordan Jefferson with the end zone. The junior quarterback has gone three straight games without a passing touchdown and was held to fewer than 100 passing yards in all three contests.
 
“I think we’re very close,” Jefferson said of the offense. “It’s going to come sooner or later, and once it does, we’re just going to stick with it and go.”
 
Facing the UT secondary may be the perfect situation for Jefferson to find his rhythm. Tennessee went defense-optional against Alabama-Birmingham, giving up 429 passing yards in a double-overtime victory.
 
That will come as welcome news to a team with the fifth-worst passing offense in the Division I Football Bowl Subdivison. Three of the four teams that ranked worse than the Tigers run the triple option offense, resulting in far fewer passing attempts.
 
“It’s very encouraging,” said LSU coach Les Miles of the Vols’ struggles. “I would look forward to hopefully attacking an opponent in a like fashion.”
 
While the play calling may include more downfield passes, those calling for LSU to abandon the option will have to wait.
 
“Like or dislike, we’re still going to run the option,” said junior running back Stevan Ridley. “When times get rough, people like to point their finger and blame, but that’s not us at all. We’re going to continue doing what we’ve been doing.”
 
Ridley has carried much of the load for the offense this season, averaging 5.8 yards per carry and notching two 100-yard games. His emergence represents a solid improvement for the running game from last season, when LSU only had one 100-yard rushing performance.
 
The offensive package may also include LSU wunderkind Patrick Peterson, who has already added special teams to his IV-inducing workload.
 
“Patrick Peterson has gotten some snaps [with the offense],” Miles said Wednesday. “Frankly, I don’t know when he would be ready, but there is some thought process there.”
 
In the meantime, Peterson is focusing on the defense’s goal of shutting opponents down. With a first-year starter in junior quarterback Matt Simms under center for Tennessee, the LSU secondary may not have the same work rate as past games.
 
The Volunteers’ offense is 119th out of 120 FBS teams in third-down conversions. The Vols have converted less than 20 percent of their third-down opportunities on the season.
 
“Those guys definitely want to run the football first and pass second,” Peterson said. “We’ve got to come out here and start fast like we’ve been doing the last four weeks.”
 
Avoiding Peterson and company means facing a stout defensive line. The Tigers piled up 10 sacks in their first two games and lead the Southeastern Conference in run defense.
 
The Tennessee offensive line, by contrast, has given up more sacks than any other SEC school.
 
But for LSU’s defensive linemen, it will still be business as usual.
“We’re going to treat everybody the same,” said senior defensive tackle Lazarius Levingston. “This is still SEC football. They’re scholarship guys as well, so we’ve got to be really prepared.”
 
The Tigers will also have to come prepared for their first home afternoon game since 2008. Despite having a 55-15 record at LSU, Les Miles is 6-8 in 2:30 p.m. kickoffs during the past five seasons.
 
The poor record in day games won’t affect the way the team approaches Saturday’s matchup, Miles said.
 
“There is no way I’m going to be anywhere but excited and finding positives at 2:30,” he said. “That time will get us done, and hopefully in the right fashion.”
 
 
 
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Contact Ryan Ginn at [email protected]