Both teams are undefeated at 3-0, and both are ranked in the Associated Press poll. LSU checks in at No. 15, West Virginia at No. 22. But a big advantage goes to LSU with the game in Baton Rouge. • LSU has won its last 30 regular-season non-conference games. The only loss to a non-SEC team over that span was to Penn State in last season’s Citrus Bowl. The last non-conference team to beat LSU in the regular season was Virginia Tech in the 2002 opener. The streak is 28 non-conference wins in Tiger Stadium. • LSU’s defense has yet to give up a point in the first quarter in any of its first three games and has allowed only 10 first-half points. The Tigers have surrendered only four touchdowns in the three games, three of them coming in the opener. • LSU is looking to start the season 4-0 for a fourth consecutive year. Scouting The Offense: LSU seems to be wasting a fine set of receivers in Terrence Toliver, Reuben Randle, and Russell Shepard in producing only 120 yards a game through the air. QB Jordan Jefferson is completing 57.9 percent of his passes but most have been short throws. Senior RB Stevan Ridley is averaging 106 yards a game rushing, third in the SEC. Scouting The Defense: Except for the second half of the opening win over North Carolina, LSU has been dominant on defense. The Tigers are second in the league against the run (80.3 yards per game) and fifth in total defense (279.7). They have only five interceptions but are tied for second in the league in sacks with 11. Quote To Note: “That defense playing the way it is, if we do the right things with the football and run it and move it when needed and throw it a little better, we will win a lot of football games.”—Coach Les Miles, assessing his team after three games. STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL This Week ‘S GAME: West Virginia at LSU, Sept. 25—This could be one of the more entertaining non-conference matchups of the weekend. Both teams are unbeaten at 3-0. The Mountaineers have one of the top offensive threats in the country in RB Noel Devine (118 yard per game rushing). Keys To The Game: Get more production offensively. The defense has been making plays, but the Tigers are averaging only 323 yards a game in total offense with a league low 120 coming through the air. The front seven must contain West Virginia’s Devine. Players To Watch: CB Patrick Peterson—Peterson had two interceptions, his first of the season, in the win over Mississippi State with the first one thwarting a Bulldog scoring threat. Peterson leads the SEC and is fifth in the country with his 23.9 punt return average. He is second in the league and 15th in the country in kickoff returns (31.7 average). DT Drake Nevis—Nevis had a defensive lineman’s dream against Mississippi State when he came up with his first career interception. The senior is second in the SEC in sacks with 3.5. WR Russell Shepard—Shepard is involved in the offense in both the receiving (six catches, 58 yards, one touchdown) and rushing (17-128, two touchdowns) games. Watch for him to take direct snaps in a “Wildcat” formation to juice up the offense. Roster Report: • RB Richard Murphy (hamstring), who started against Vanderbilt but did not play against Mississippi State, is likely to return. • TE Deangelo Peterson (foot) has missed the first three games after sustaining his injury the week before the season opener, but he may return for the West Virginia game. The junior has 15 career starts. • RG Will Blackwell (ankle) and WR Chris Tolliver (concussion) remain out.
