“It’s a game that dreams are made of.”LSU sophomore center T-Bob Hebert quipped this phrase to describe the No. 4 Tigers matchup with the No. 1 Florida Gators on Saturday night in Tiger Stadium. “This is why you come to LSU — to play in these big-time games,” Hebert said. “I’m nervous, and I’m excited. It’s going to be a lot of fun to be out there, and we’re comfortable in Death Valley.”The LSU-Florida game brings the highest combined rankings for a matchup in Tiger Stadium since 1959, when No. 1 LSU beat No. 3 Ole Miss, 7-3.Florida coach Urban Meyer expressed similar sentiments about Saturday’s game between two of the top five teams in the nation.”We’re looking forward to our annual battle with one of the most talented teams in the country,” Meyer said. “It’s obviously a tough place to go play. That’s why you come to a school like Florida — you want to play at places like [LSU].”LSU coach Les Miles said fans in his team’s home stadium bring a passion like no other in the Southeastern Conference.”Our fans are so tied to our players and this team,” Miles said. “They not only know the numbers of [the players] and [their positions], but what they look like even … It’s like your brother is playing, and you watch every snap he takes.”Meyer said while Tiger Stadium is a formidable SEC site to play, the extent of the home-field advantage ultimately comes down to the talent of the home team.”The city isn’t a factor if the team isn’t very good,” Meyer said. “What makes LSU’s stadium and environment is the players wearing the jerseys … With all due respect to LSU, that stuff is overrated.”Like this season, LSU was No. 4 going into its annual square-off with Florida in 2008, which was No. 11 at the time.The Tigers fell behind, 20-0, and eventually lost, 51-21, in one of two games when they surrendered more than 50 points that season.Junior safety Chad Jones said one reason LSU lost was because they fell behind so fast, something the team cannot afford to let happen against Florida’s No. 1 total defense in the country.”We got behind real quick [in 2008], and it’s hard to catch up when you fall behind against Florida,” Jones said. “Things just didn’t fall our way, and things got out of hand … We got tired from being on the field so long.”The LSU defense is still unsure of who the opposing quarterback will be Saturday. Senior Tim Tebow was cleared to return to practice Tuesday, but whether he or redshirt sophomore John Brantley will start is likely to be a game-time decision.In three career games against LSU since 2006, Tebow has 404 passing yards, 124 rushing yards, nine touchdowns (six passing and three rushing), and just one interception.But Tebow’s perennial success against the Tigers aside, Jones said the LSU defense will be ready to face the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner if he is cleared to play.”Everybody wants Tim Tebow to play,” Jones said. “We definitely want to go against the best because it brings out the best in us.”As far as whether LSU defenders will shy away from hitting Tebow in the aftermath of his concussion, Jones said that is part of football.”You definitely want to wrap him up and make physical tackles — that’s the style of defense we play here,” Jones said. “We’re not trying to put a radar on Tim Tebow; you don’t want to hit anybody in the head. But if he plays, we have to hit him.”LSU’s quarterback situation entering Saturday is firm, as sophomore Jordan Jefferson prepares to start his first game against a top-5 team. Against then-No. 18 Georgia, Jefferson persuaded offensive coordinator Gary Crowton to call a handoff to senior running back Charles Scott that turned into the winning touchdown.But Jefferson was also sacked six times, an aspect he said he needs to correct by “moving around more in the pocket.””The first thing [coaches] told me was, if I had an alley, to run instead of taking a sack,” Jefferson said. “The second option was to throw the ball out of bounds.”This will be the second straight year LSU has hosted the No. 1 team in the country. LSU lost to Alabama, 27-21, in overtime Nov. 8.Miles said while the rankings of LSU and Florida are making headlines, the teams’ sole objective Saturday will be to win.”It becomes easy to categorize 1 vs. 4 and 4 vs. 1, and that’s a nice way to do it,” Miles said. “But it’s two talented football teams competing for a victory — a victory that is important to their goals as we go forward. It will be an exciting go.”—-Contact Rachel Whittaker at [email protected]
Football: LSU, Fla. highest-ranked teams to face off in Tiger Stadium since 1959
October 8, 2009