No. 4 LSU
Who has the most talent in the SEC?
Who has the schedule tilted its way, with exposure and home field advantage in key game(s)?
Who has the best running back?
Who has 18 starters returning from a team which won 9 games a year ago?
Who has the best coach in the SEC?
The answer, arguably to all but one of those questions is LSU.[membership level="0"] The rest of this article is available to subscribers only - to become a subscriber click here. [/membership] [membership]
The answer to the last question, unarguably with most SEC observers, is not LSU.
Ah, the eternal question about LSU and coach Les Miles, who brings another group of hungry and talented Tigers into their season opener against Wisconsin--at Green Bay's Lambeau Field.
Leading the way is running back Leonard Fournette, a Heisman front runner this season. LSU needs to get a solid year from QB Brandon Harris, keep Fournette healthy (ankle injury in pre-season but not serious) and beat Alabama in Baton Rouge on November 5. Do that and win the opener against the Badgers and all things, including a national championship are possible. But the Miles factor always kicks in, sometimes not in a good way and that is the question mark.
The countdown thus far: No. 16 Pepper Hamilton (Baylor), No. 15 Georgia, No. 14 Michigan State , No. 13 Miami, No. 12 Houston, No. 11 Ohio State, No. 10 Stanford, No. 9, No. 8 Tennessee, N0. 7 Notre Dame, No. 6 FSU, No. 5 Oklahoma. [/membership]