LSU Tigers

BATON ROUGE, La. -- There's a popular t-shirt floating around Baton Rouge that says "There's Nobody in the Conference that has Swagga Like Us." with LSU in gold letters.

In postseason games, that was largely true...until last season.

When Alabama dominated the Tigers, 21-0 in the BCS National Championship Game, it not only ended LSU's dreams for one of the great seasons of the BCS era, it also put a damper to the notion that the Tigers, 5-1 in bowls under Les Miles, were at their best in postseason games.

That part of its swagger compromised, LSU will look to regain some of that reputation in the Chick-fil-A Bowl, the site of two of the previous five Miles LSU bowl wins.

"Our football team really is anxious for a quality game. We’re looking for a bowl game that’s a great matchup, and certainly those Clemson Tigers are a very, very talented football team," Miles said.

The Tigers coach has certainly done a masterful job of motivating his teams for bowl games. In 2008, an LSU team that limped to the finish in the worst year of the Miles tenure gouged Georgia Tech at the Chick-fil-A. Miles' Tigers teams have maimed Miami at the Chick-fil-A, knocked out Notre Dame at the Sugar Bowl, tamed Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl and, of course, owned Ohio State in the 2008 BCS national championship game.

The one blemish in all that came in the 2009 season when LSU met Penn State on a field that was so muddy, it was nearly unplayable, and lost 19-17 in the Capital One Bowl, the only loss to a non-SEC team in Miles' eight years as head coach at LSU. That's what it seemed to take to beat LSU in the postseason, a freakishly muddy field that negated LSU's speed advantage and took away the edge the Tigers seemed to have when Miles had time to prepare.

But that was before Jan. 9, 2012, the day that changed everybody's perception about how Miles-coached LSU teams prepared in bowls. LSU was so inept on offense, it crossed midfield just once. The Tigers looked lethargic, over-matched and ill-prepared at the tail end of what some were calling the greatest regular season college football has seen.

With LSU facing a 10-2 Clemson team averaging 42 points a game, Les Miles will have a chance to prove that last year an anomaly. And maybe restore that swagger.

It's hard to say about a 10-2 season, but LSU's 2012 campaign is going to be remembered for missed opportunities. The Tigers were top contenders for a national championship and instead finished second in the SEC West and were relegated to the Chick fil-A Bowl. It's not necessarily fair, but that's the level LSU football has reached during the tenure of Les Miles.

So it's only fitting that the most memorable moment of 2012 was a disappointment -- one in which the Tigers let one of the biggest wins of Miles' tenure slip away in just less than a minute of gameplay.

A Herculean, 298-yard night from Zach Mettenberger, coupled with a defensive performance that limited Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron to 1-of-7 passing in the second half, had lifted LSU to a 17-14 lead against the No. 1 Crimson Tide with 1:34 remaining in regulation. McCarron wasn't the only member of the Alabama offense to suffer in the second half of a classic, as freshman tailback T.J. Yeldon fumbled at the end of the third quarter to set LSU up to take the lead on a 90-yard touchdown drive.

None of that mattered when McCarron took over at his own 28-yard line after a missed LSU field goal. The junior, who burned the Tigers in the 2011 BCS Championship Game, guided the Crimson Tide effortlessly compared to his struggles from earlier in the game. McCarron found junior receiver Kevin Norwood three times in a row for gains of 18, 15 and 11, respectively. LSU fans will forever bemoan defensive coordinator John Chavis' conservative defensive gameplan to allow such easy completions, especially given the way the Tigers had limited McCarron to just 93 passing yards before the final drive.

The completions to Norwood set Alabama up on the Tigers' 28-yard line, and the rest is history. LSU freshman cornerback Jalen Mills tore in from the near sideline on a 2nd-and-10 blitz. McCarron fired a short screen pass to Yeldon right in the gap created by the blitz, and after the freshman dodged a tackle by linebacker Kevin Minter, he was off to the end zone and a 21-17 Alabama lead.

It took LSU the better part of a half of football to overcome a 14-3 halftime deficit. Even worse, the Tigers had two chances to seal the deal on a crucial victory, but they were stuffed on a 4th-and-1 attempt, and Drew Alleman's 45-yard field goal attempt missed just before McCarron took the field.

In just five plays, McCarron and the Tide erased all of that progress. LSU's last-minute drive fell well short, and Alabama earned the win. Had LSU held on, it would have grabbed a second consecutive SEC West championship and been alive in the national title discussion.

Which is why all conversations about LSU's missed opportunities in 2012 will begin and end with "The Drive."

The bowl season is getting closer and closer, and as we all prepare for what truly is the most wonderful time of year, it's time to rank the nine bowl games that involve SEC teams.

This month, ESPN colleague Mark Schlabach took the time to rank all 35 bowl games. We only have nine to discuss here, but some are very intriguing matchups.

Here's how the SEC's slate of bowls ranks from top to bottom:

1. Discover BCS National Championship: No. 1 Notre Dame vs. No. 2 Alabama (Jan. 7: ESPN, 8:30 p.m. ET, Sun Life Stadium, Miami) -- Two quintessential blue-collar football teams will smash into each other for the national championship. This game also features two of the most respected/hated football programs of all-time. People from all over will be disgusted with themselves for having to root for either squad in a game where some big hits and bruises will be given out.

2. AT&T Cotton Bowl: No. 9 Texas A&M vs. No. 11 Oklahoma (Jan. 4: Fox, 8 p.m. ET, Cowboys Stadium, Arlington, Texas) -- The scoreboard inside Jerry's World better have brand new bulbs, because there are going to be a lot of points in this one. The Aggies will be without offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury, who accepted the head-coaching job at Texas Tech, but Heisman winner Johnny Manziel and his group of playmakers will be ready -- and rested. Both teams are averaging more than 500 yards and 40 points a game.

3. Chick-fil-A Bowl: No. 8 LSU vs. No. 14 Clemson (Dec. 31: ESPN, 7:30 p.m. ET, Georgia Dome, Atlanta) -- One stout defense takes on one of the nation's flashiest offenses. The only thing is that LSU currently has some real bite on offense, so that Clemson defense better make adjustments after giving up 444 yards and 27 points in a home loss to South Carolina. Oh, and if Tajh Boyd thought Jadeveon Clowney was a handful, he now has to face Sam Montgomery and Barkevious Mingo coming at him from the outside.

4. Allstate Sugar Bowl: No. 21 Louisville vs. No. 3 Florida (Jan. 2: ESPN, 8:30 p.m. ET, Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans) -- Some people are turning their noses up at this game, but there are a lot of fun storylines. This is a huge bowl for the Cardinals, and coach Charlie Strong was once the Gators' defensive coordinator. Teddy Bridgewater was also recruited by Florida. We've also learned that Florida's offense can be pretty tough when healthy, and a month off should have the Gators in proper form.

5. Outback Bowl: No. 10 South Carolina vs. No. 18 Michigan (Jan. 1: ESPN, 1 p.m. ET, Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Fla.) -- Clowney and fellow defensive end Devin Taylor get another mobile quarterback to chase around. Michigan had major issues with the last SEC team it played, and this South Carolina defense is a little more aggressive than the Alabama one that made the Wolverines' offense relatively obsolete in Arlington this year.

6. TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl: Mississippi State vs. Northwestern (Jan. 1, ESPN2, 12 p.m. ET, EverBank Field, Jacksonville, Fla.) -- At first, I wasn't thrilled about this game, considering how the Bulldogs ended the season. But the more I think about it, the more I realize that this team will be fired up to prove people that its better than its 1-4 finish to the regular season. Plus, Mississippi State is going for its second nine-win season in four years, something this program has never done.

7. Capital One Bowl: No. 7 Georgia vs. No. 16 Nebraska (Jan. 1: ABC, 1 p.m. ET, Florida Citrus Bowl, Orlando, Fla.) -- On the surface, this looks like a very fun matchup. But you have to wonder how both of these teams are feeling after they lost in their respective conference title games. The Bulldogs were literally a play away from the national championship, while the Huskers missed out on the Rose Bowl Game Presented by Vizio because of a blowout loss to Wisconsin. Both teams expected a much bigger bowl at season's end and could be a little down heading into this one.

8. BBVA Compass Bowl: Pittsburgh vs. Ole Miss (Jan. 5: ESPN, 1 p.m. ET, Legion Field, Birmingham, Ala.) -- So both teams are 6-6 and barely made the bowl cut. They're in the postseason, and both showed a lot of fight this year. Both are also averaging more than 400 yards of offense a game. Pitt took Notre Dame to the wire in triple overtime and owns the nation's No. 16 defense, which means the Rebels' offense will have to keep up its high-flying routine if it wants its first bowl win since 2009.

9. Franklin Mortgage Music City Bowl: NC State vs. Vanderbilt (Dec. 31: ESPN, noon ET, LP Field, Nashville, Tenn.) -- For starters, I'm opposed to any team having to play in its own city for a bowl game unless its a BCS bowl. The Commodores ended the season on a six-game winning streak, while NC State's season ended with the Wolfpack losing three of five and seeing head coach Tom O'Brien get fired. Dana Bible will be coaching in his place.

BATON ROUGE, La. -- Leading up to the Chick-fil-A Bowl, we'll take a daily look at a key LSU player. We'll examine how he has done and what his challenges are for the Clemson game.

La'el Collins, Left Guard, Soph.

Accomplishments: You knew Collins was special. You knew it from the fact that he was one of the top high school offensive linemen in the Class of 2011. You knew it because when Josh Dworaczyk, the two-year starter at left guard, returned from injury, it was still Collins that was the unquestioned starter at the position as a true sophomore. But it wasn't until Dworaczyk came back from complications from his injury after the Florida game that Collins blossomed. With the sixth-year senior playing next to him at left tackle, Collins played with confidence and often mauled opponents down the stretch.

Shortcomings: Collins was a work in progress in his second season out of high school. By his own admission, he often played thinking about what he was supposed to do rather than my instinct. It was only when Dworaczyk lined up next to him that Collins started playing with confidence. By season's end, however, Dworaczyk said Collins had "graduated" past needing the on-field tutor.

Against Clemson: It's the last chance for Collins to line up next to his mentor. Collins will have a much-anticipated junior season. It'll be interesting to see, after mastering the position midway through his sophomore year, then going through the mini-camp that is bowl preparation, if Collins is ready to take yet another step in his evolution to a dominant SEC lineman.