LSU Tigers

BATON ROUGE, La. -- LSU dominated the first half of the showdown with No. 3 South Carolina Saturday, but had a 7-3 deficit to show for it.

A 2-yard pass from Connor Shaw to Ace Sanders for a touchdown, set up by a 70-yard interception return of a Zach Mettenberger pass by Jimmy Legree was enough to give South Carolina the lead despite having half the first downs and (5 to LSU's 10) and less than half the yards (69 to LSU's 179).

LSU, usually a team that excels at special teams, had a missed field goal and a shanked punt.

Stat of the half: 7-for-10. A week after the Tigers failed to convert on 12 of 13 third downs in a 14-6 loss at Florida, the Tigers converted 7 of 10 third downs and consistently moved the chains, holding the ball for 17:25.

Player of the half: Legree, who jumped a slant pass and returned it inside the LSU 1 to change a game that was dominated by the Tigers.

What's working for LSU: The makeshift offensive line. With two starters out, the Tigers still controlled the clock, piecing together 10 first downs, 87 yards rushing and 178 total yards. Trai Turner got his first start for the Tigers at right guard for Josh Williford. Josh Dworaczyk started at LT for Alex Hurst.

What's not working for LSU: Mettenberger's interception spoiled an otherwise decent half (7-for-14, 91 yards). The Tigers' special teams was off. Drew Alleman shanked a 33-yard field goal attempt (he did make a 23-yard attempt for the Tigers' only points) and Brad Wing shanked his only punt attempt for 10 yards. The Tigers were good at moving the chains, but all three times they failed to convert a third-down conversion, they were in South Carolina territory, twice in the red zone.

With both LSU and South Carolina possession fearsome pass rushes, the theme for LSU's Les Miles and South Carolina's Steve Spurrier Wednesday morning seemed to be more on how they will be marginalized this week when they meet. With both teams leaning on the run, perhaps this won't be the best showcase for pass-rushers like South Carolina's Jadaveon Clowney and LSU's Sam Montgomery.

1. Low impact?: Asked about the possible impact of the two teams' star defensive ends, Spurrier said "If there isn't a lot of passing going on, those pass rushers aren't going to get to show off their skills." In last week's 35-7 win over Georgia, South Carolina only threw 10 passes. Spurrier noted that "LSU doesn't throw it a whole lot" either.

2. Cut, then run: Spurrier said his desire is to get the ball into the hands of running back Marcus Lattimore "as much as possible," but added that he doesn't want to overuse the star running back, who has more carries (116) than any other SEC back and is sixth in yards per game (549 in six games). But Lattimore's presence is a big reason why quarterback Connor Shaw has been an effective runner, often using fakes to Lattimore in Shaw's cut/read option run game.

"[Shaw] has good feet and makes good decisions," Miles said. "He's not going to stay in the pocket any length of time."

3. Get it fixed: Miles said getting LSU's struggling offense moving was his "day job."

"It's the thought process you have when you wake up and go to bed," Miles said. "The players realize nobody's going to get this corrected but us."

LSU's offense has scored one touchdown in its last three games against SEC teams.

BATON ROUGE, La. -- LSU, a team that has become increasingly dependent on freshmen, lost arguably its best one Saturday against Florida and might call on another to make his first start this weekend against South Carolina.

Tigers coach Les Miles said Monday linebacker Kwon Alexander, who had started the last two games, is likely out for the season with a foot injury suffered in the 14-6 loss to the Gators. Also questionable for this weekend's game against No. 3 South Carolina at Tiger Stadium is right offensive guard Josh Williford, who Miles said was "nicked" after suffering an apparent head injury against the Gators.

They are the latest in what has been a rash of injuries and attrition for No. 9 LSU, which has lost five starters, likely for the season, since August camp.

"Our football team is going through some change," Miles acknowledged Monday. "We need to play better in a number of ways."

While Williford might play, his potential loss for the South Carolina game could have a huge impact. The junior has been one of the better players on an offensive line that has, in general, struggled in the Tigers' 5-1 start. The Tiger are going up against a Gamecocks defense that is third in the league in total defense (278 yards per game) and leads the SEC in sacks (25, eight more than the next team).

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