One of the most treasured sounds of Tiger Stadium is the historic hymn of the “Chinese Bandits” tune, honoring the legendary defense of LSU’s first national championship team in 1958.
LSU’s past two national championship squads revived that mentality and continued the tradition of destructive Tiger defenses.
So with a new No. 1 ranking and similar goals in sight, the Tigers are hoping to mirror the recipe formulated in 2003 and 2007.
Throughout four games this season, LSU’s defense ranks No. 20 in the nation, surrendering 289 yards per game, despite having played three ranked opponents on the road — all of which rank in the top 45 in the nation in total offense.
Even with the rigorous early season schedule, the Tigers are registering numbers comparable to both title-winning teams.
“It was a great defense in ‘07,” said senior linebacker Ryan Baker. “I think this defense has a lot of similarities about our work ethic. We watch film on them and we see how they move and how they react to certain situations.”
Of all three defenses, the current squad is stopping the run best, holding opponents to 53.25 yards per game, good for fourth in the nation and better than both the 2003 and 2007 teams, which averaged 67 and 106 yards per game, respectively.
The 2011 squad is also on pace for similar interception numbers and more forced fumbles than the previous champions, in part due to the efforts of sophomore cornerback Tyrann Mathieu, who said he remembers growing up watching the former Tiger teams.
“I remember all those guys,” said Mathieu, whose seven career forced fumbles ties a school record. “I try to mimic my game after all those guys and take pieces and parts of those games and put it into my game. Those guys were physical. Those guys didn’t make a lot of mistakes, and I think our defense is pretty much the same.”
LSU’s scoring defense currently ranks No. 14 in the nation, allowing 14.3 points per game.
If they continue at that rate, the Tigers would finish better than the 2007 squad, which gave up 19.9 points per game, and a little behind 2003’s team, which allowed 11 points per game.
The current defense is also a step behind in the passing game, surrendering 235.75 yards per game, as opposed to 185 yards in 2003 and 182.7 yards in 2007.
Senior quarterback Jarrett Lee, who was a redshirt freshman in 2007, said despite the numbers, he feels the current defense may be the best he’s ever been around.
“They’re close,” Lee said. “This one is pretty good, if not better. We have some good players on this team defensively, and they’re really doing some good things for us right now.
They’ve got some pretty physical players and some smart players as well. I like this defense.”
While legendary names like defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey, cornerback Corey Webster and safety LaRon Landry can be found on the former championship rosters, Baker said what sets this defense apart is the lack of individual standouts.
“I believe the difference between that defense and this defense is that we don’t have one certain guy,” Baker said. “We don’t have one impact guy. We have a bunch of guys that can ball.”
LSU coach Les Miles, who has coached for more than 30 years at five different locations, praised the abilities of the 2011 squad, but said dubbing one better than another is too difficult.
“It’s hard for me because I am the LSU coach and I love every one of those teams,” Miles said. “This defense is one of the fastest teams that I’ve had. There are more big-time plays made on this defense than I’ve been around for a while. To compare it to other great defenses here is hard for me to do. I’ve been very fortunate.”
 
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Contact Mark Clements at [email protected]