Despite LSU’s dominating performance last Saturday against Sam Houston State, LSU football coach Les Miles said at his weekly “Lunch with Les” press conference his team is not prepared to face the Southeastern Conference
schedule ahead. 
“We’re not ready to play our best opponents, but this is a very quality one, and it will be a great challenge for us,” Miles said. “We’re not where we need to be.” 
The Tigers get one more chance to improve before their SEC season begins with a game against the University of Louisiana-Monroe Sept. 13 in Tiger Stadium. 
Miles said that the Warhawks have a knack for upset victories and expects their best effort again this Saturday. 
“If you look back not too long ago, they beat an Arkansas team that was nationally ranked and several years ago, the Monroe team beat Alabama,” Miles said. “We are so warned, and we recognize and respect that opponent.” 
When asked about the potential shift to power-five conference teams only playing against other power-five conference teams that would eliminate these games, Miles said that it would be a mistake, and the freedom to schedule teams from smaller conferences creates variety within college football. 
Miles said the Tigers played 16 true freshmen against Sam Houston State, four of whom scored touchdowns. He said he sees the young players making the necessary improvements. 
“This was a game where a lot of our youth came to grow up,” Miles said. “[I] felt like the growth that needed to take place there certainly is being done.” 
In that 56-0 win, freshman running back Darrel Williams powered his way into the endzone from the fullback position. Miles said he expects not only Williams but also all four running backs to make plays at fullback. 
“Our four tailbacks are big, strong, physical guys, and they run hard,” Miles said. “They are talented, and then we are going to have to find some athletic things for them to do at fullback … catch balls, some blocking assignments, as well as rushing the ball.” 
LSU used ten offensive linemen to pave the way for those running backs to total 239 rushing yards.  
This Saturday, LSU will add another player to the mix. Senior Elliot Porter will return to the LSU lineup and not only play but also take over his usual starting center position. 
Two more Tigers are vying for playing time: Defensive backs Rickey Jefferson and Dwayne Thomas each had an interception last weekend against Sam Houston State. 
Miles said their playing time depends on how much they
progress as the season goes along. 
“It’s always that adjustment that needs to be perfected and always that technique that they need to improve upon, and as long as they are doing that, we won’t have any problem playing the best players and getting [the best players] on the field,” Miles said. 
Even though freshman Cameron Gamble and sophomore Trent Domingue have totaled eight touchbacks on fifteen kickoffs, Miles said the Tigers have thought about experimenting with ways to pin the opponent inside the 25-yard line. 
“We like covering kicks and we like making tackles,” Miles said. “We’ll kick it out some and when we don’t want to kick it out, we’ll drop it on the five‑yard line with great hang time.”