Know Your Opponent: LSU

Although they prefer to play in Gainesville, the Gators have
picked up their fair share of wins in Baton Rouge. The second
was a 13-10 triumph in 1960. The Gators needed a 47-yard
field goal (then a conference record) to overcome the Tigers.
The Seminole

Heading on the road for the second consecutive week, the Gators now face the Tigers of Louisiana State University. LSU traces its establishment back to 1860, when the Louisiana State Seminary of Learning & Military Academy was opened in Pineville with William Tecumseh Sherman as superintendent. Sherman left the academy after Louisiana seceded from the Union. The school remained closed after the Federal army occupied Pineville in 1863, but reopened against after the war. After the college burned down in 1869, it moved to Baton Rouge and changed its name to "Louisiana State University". After merging with the another institution, the name was changed to "Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College" in 1877, which is still the official name today (though it is rarely ever used in favor of the short name). The school’s campus was established at its current location in 1926. The school expanded rapidly during the governorship of Huey Long. Currently, the university enrolls over 30,000 students and more than 25,000 undergrads. School colors are royal purple and old gold (often just purple and yellow in appearance).

The LSU Tigers are among the oldest and most successful programs in the history of college football. The school began playing football in 1893. LSU joined the Southern Conference (SoCon) in 1922, one year after it was founded. The Tigers won a share of the SoCon title in 1932. Louisiana State became a charter member of the Southeastern Conference when the conference was formed in 1933. LSU has won 11 SEC titles, a total surpassed only by Alabama, Georgia, and Tennessee; their first SEC title was won in 1935 and the most recent in 2011. The Tigers play home football games in Tiger Stadium, nicknamed “Death Valley”. One of the largest (and loudest, at times) stadiums in the country, Tiger Stadium can seat in excess of 102,000 fans.

Louisiana State has won three national titles in its history (1958, 2003, and 2007). Only two of these titles (1958 and 2007) are recognized by the AP, as the 2003 AP national title was awarded to the USC Trojans; however, the 2003 Tigers won the BCS National Championship that year. LSU’s Billy Cannon won the Heisman Trophy in 1959 (to date, the school’s only winner). Of LSU’s national championship teams, only the 1958 squad finished with a perfect (11-0) record, winning by at least seven points against every opponent other than Florida and Mississippi State. The 2003 team lost 19-7 to Florida in Tiger Stadium, while the 2007 squad actually lost twice (to Kentucky and Arkansas, both in triple overtime). LSU's greatest teams are characterized by strong defense and a powerful running game. Coincidentally, each LSU national championship team played their post-season bowl game in nearby New Orleans.

The 2009 Gators were the last to achieve victory at LSU.
Florida broke the Tigers' 32-game home winning streak with
the 13-3 win; the Gators triumphed with a strong ground game
(gaining 193 rushing yards) and good defense (holding LSU to
just 162 yards of offense). Sean Gardner/Reuters

The Tigers are one of the few programs to have won three national titles under three separate head coaches. Many argue that the beloved Charlie McClendon (1962–1979), who served the Tigers for 18 season but never won a national title or more than one conference title, was the greatest Tiger head ball coach. His predecessor, Paul Dietzel (1955–1961), produced three great teams, won two SEC championships, and the Tigers' first national championship, but three of his seven seasons ended with losing records. LSU had three winning seasons from 1989 to 1999. Nick Saban was hired the next year and almost immediately returned LSU to being a national power. Saban led LSU to two SEC titles and the 2003 BCS Championship while never posting a losing record. Saban's successor and current head coach, Les Miles, has also led the Tigers to a pair of conference titles and a national title. Miles has upheld a high standard of excellence at LSU, never winning fewer than eight games in a season and winning 10 or more games in seven of his 10 completed seasons.

Through much of LSU's history, no rival had been more important than Tulane. LSU and Tulane had battled for in-state bragging rights since 1893 and a trophy called "the Rag" since 1940. The rivalry was closely contested for its first five decades. However, Tulane's program fell into decline after the end of the Second World War. Since 1949, Tulane has only defeated LSU four times. Barring one year during the First World War, LSU had played Tulane every year since 1911. However, the increasingly lopsided nature of the series led to the cancellation of the annual bout after 1994. The two teams have not played since 2009 (LSU currently leads the series 69-23-7). Since Tulane's decline, LSU's primary rival has varied over the years. LSU and Ole Miss hold a fierce series that has been played nearly every year since 1926 (LSU leads 59-40-4). LSU is also a critical rival of Arkansas and Texas A&M, two of the SEC's expansion schools whose states share a border with Louisiana. LSU leads Arkansas in their series, 37-21-2, while they also lead their series with Texas A&M, 30-20-3. As you can determine from these series records, LSU tends to dominate their rivals and hate them less less than they themselves are hated. This is reversed in the case of Alabama. The Crimson Tide has gotten the better of LSU more often than not, and LSU trails in that series by a wide margin, 49-25-5.

The Gators and Tigers have a long history of playing another that goes back to their first meeting in 1937. The Florida-LSU game has occurred on a regular basis since 1953 and annually since 1971. In total, Florida and LSU have played 61 times; Florida has won 31 of these games, while LSU has won 27 (three games have ended in ties). Recently, the rivalry has become extremely competitive, with the last 18 games being won nine times by each school. In that span, six of LSU's nine victories have come by seven points or less; meanwhile, all of Florida's nine victories during this period have come by eight points or more.