I think 6-2/7-1. No TM7/Claiborne who were the difference makers in the WVU game and Oregon might be a push. We would lose one of those games for sure and not sure about the other. Remember we struggled to beat a 1-5 Auburn team this year....
Well they beat us, and even though you don't want to believe it, LSU is a very good football team. Until Oregon or West Virginia prove they can beat SEC teams, I'm going to assume they can't. IMO 2012 LSU and Florida would beat 2011 Oregon and West Virginia. And yes, we struggled against 1-5 Auburn, but we also beat USC at home and TAMU on the road.
Exactly. We were woefully outgained in each of those games last year. I'm not convinced that this year's offense wouldn't perform better.
It would be a lot closer. I don't think anybody BUT TM7 could have stripped and scored on that punt return, and STs as a whole are nowhere NEAR the level they were last year.
Including FBS teams ONLY: Through the first 8 games of 2011, the LSU offense averaged 368.15 yds/gm against defenses that gave up an average of 359.14 yds/gm. (102.5% of what opponents give up on average) Through the first 8 games of 2012, the LSU offense averaged 369.67 yds/gm against defenses that gave up an average of 356.84 yds/gm. (103.6% of what opponents give up on average) I don't see this great disparity in quality of competition or performance.
Special teams "hidden" yardage is the biggest difference. We were pinning teams deep with Wing and the badger, and continually flipping field position in LSU's favor. This year, the tables are turned. We've started more drives in our ten so far than I remember through all of last year, which means we may be gaining similar yardage, but not getting to the redzone as often. Add to that the GREAT disparity in red zone efficiency, and it's clear that this team isn't as complete as last year's.
Well...I agree with all that. My previous post was directed at the OP, mostly. The FBS teams that we played last year, on average, are comparable with the ones we have played this year, even if there was one fewer, so you are probably right, the games might be much closer. I still think we would still have been 8-0 or 7-1. I don't care what anybody says about Auburn, winning @Auburn and @Texas A&M is difficult. Our only loss is on the road in the Swamp, which is a much tougher environment against a team at least as good as any place and team we played through the first 8 weeks last season.
Those are good points and I agree. That being said we have much untapped potential on this team and every week we have seen improved though spotty play. Since USCe we have improved as a team. Frankly I don't think this year's team will be as good as last year's BUT we have a very real potential to finish the job that wasn't done last year.
