Here are LSU's national rankings in each category (out of 120 teams):

Total Offense: 109
Scoring Offense: 89
Rushing Offense: 88
Passing Offense: 103
Passing Efficiency: 46

Sacks Allowed: 107 (3/game)

Total Defense: 40
Scoring Defense: 14
Rushing Defense: 55
Passing Defense: 40
Passing Efficiency Defense: 21

Sacks: 114 (0.83/game)

Tackles for Loss: 97

Here are LSU's SEC rankings in each category (out of 12 teams):

Total Offense: 12
Scoring Offense: 11
Rushing Offense: 11
Passing Offense: 10
Passing Efficiency: 5

Sacks Allowed: 12 (3/game) - an abomination

Total Defense: 7
Scoring Defense: 4
Rushing Defense: 6
Passing Defense: 8
Passing Efficiency Defense: 6

Sacks: 12 (0.83/game) - this is an indicator of DL play

Tackles for Loss: 12 - this is also an indicator of DL play

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After six games, halfway through the season, the following are my thoughts (no more enlightened than anyone else, just like to voice/vent mine) on LSU this year and our program going forward. The outcome of the game against FL was an obvious one. There was nothing that had transpired in the first five games that gave me confidence that we would win the game. Having said that I still held out hope we might pull something out with an inspired effort in Tiger stadium on a Saturday night. For that to have happened we would have needed the best effort of the year from our offensive line and from our QB. We got more of the same from both. Neither the OL or the QB seems to have progressed that much from game 1 to game 6.

Miles assertion before the season that this was his best OL of his tenure at LSU is laughable at this point. This is the worst OL he's had since he's been at LSU and it doesn't seem to be improving. Dworacyck is playing out of position at OG (he has a OT body) and is probably a year away from a physical standpoint to even deserving playing time. T-Bob is also about a year away from a physical standpoint to deserving playing time. On top of that you have Ciron Black having the worst year of his career at LSU. He has done damage to his draft stock this year. Unfortunately because we have not recruited well in the OL (proof of that is the on field performance as well as the number of DL we've moved to the OL over the last 3 years) next season we'll be replacing RG and LT and I’m not sure if we have the depth to do so. If the OL hasn't improved by the end of the year, we'll have as many questions about our OL next offseason as we had this offseason. From a program stability standpoint, that will not be a good thing.

I don't want to get too down on Jefferson at this point because he's the youngest starting QB in the SEC this year and only has 8 starts under his belt. We should start to see improvement in his decision making (reading defenses, not locking into his #1 read, and releasing the ball on check downs or getting rid of it more timely) as the year goes on, or we need to start worrying about the QB position long term. If Jefferson doesn't improve by the end of this year from where he is today, we will go into next offseason with as many questions about our QB position as we went into this last offseason. From a program stability standpoint, that will not be a good thing. I think it's too early to decide if he'll pan out or not. He's clearly not the most accurate QB and he does not have a very good feel for the game from the pocket. He is best suited to throwing the ball out of play action or rolling out of the pocket. He's being asked to drop back too much right now and he's just not ready for it. I think the coaches could do a little better job of running the offense to fit his strengths.

All of our offensive struggles start from the OL and move back to the QB. The rest of it is we are not adapting our play calling to our teams strengths and away from our weaknesses. We are not a power running team and we will not be this year. To continue to force that is stubborness and it's costing our team. 3rd and 2 from the goal line, and we run a power play when we haven't been successful all year in short yardage power plays. We had just had success running the ball out of the spread on the play before and we go back to a power play. We can't do it this year and we weren't going to do it against the best defense we've seen. It's time to acknowledge that and adapt our offense to our talent. If we want to have a running game we should watch tape of FL. The NFL is well known as a copy cat league. It's ok to copy what someone else does well. FL hasn't had a power running game since Meyer has been there. They haven't had a dominant TB since he's been there and yet they lead the country in rushing. How? Spread them out, get the defense going one way and they hit you with 4.3 speed on the cutback lanes. With Trindon and Sheppard we can do the same things FL does with Rainey and Demps. As much as I like Scott, we don't have the OL for his style and running him out of the spread and off the option (which we've been doing the last two games) is not using your best talent for that type of scheme. Sheppard is your best talent for running the ball out of the spread. Yet he never sees the field on Saturday. This is coaching and it goes back to Miles influence on the offense. I don't think he's calling the plays, but the power formations we are seeing are definitely there because of his influence. It's time for this staff to change.

Defensively we've seen improvement from week to week and they have been the biggest bright spot on this team as a unit. Chavis has had an impact on this unit. They play hard and fast. They aren't confused like we saw last year, and I believe he's getting the most out of what he has. Our LB's are playing better as a unit than I can remember. Our secondary is probably the most talented as a unit in the SEC. It's clear we have more speed on the field in the back 7 this year than we've had the last two years (at least). What is clear though is that our defensive line is not what you'd expect from a top 10 team. It's the worst group we've had since probably 2000. Danielson was right on Saturday when he said we don't have any difference makers on the DL. We don't. 4 straight games without a sack from the DL. That is not what we've been used to around here. And the difference between us and FL on defense was the D-line. It's hard to understand, because according to the rating services we've recruited well on the d-line the last 3 years. But that talent just has not developed on the field. They play hard, but they aren't that good against the run or the pass.

After watching last year and the first six games of this year it's very clear to me that our program has taken a step back. Whereas from 2003-2007 we were legitimately a top 5 program, we are clearly not anymore. What's hard to know is if it's a legit expectation for us to be so each and every year. While LA is a hotbed for recruiting, we traditionally have been known more for skill players than for linemen. LA has traditionally been light on quality OL and the last two years we've really been down on overall OL quality to recruit. Having said that, having had the success we've had, we should have been able to do a better job replacing OL and DL talent the last few years. To compound matters our QB situation was mishandled from a recruiting standpoint and we are still paying the price for it. Not having recruited QB's for a couple of years during Perilloux's time here is still hurting us. The jury is still out on Lee and Jefferson both. Sheppard is not ever going to be your starting QB. He's Percy Harvin, not Michael Vick. My opinion, and hopefully I'm wrong. Garrett? Who knows. Overall, we have as good of skill players in our program as we've ever had. We can beat most teams just with our skill players, though we will be in a dogfight to do so, because we aren't consistently winning the battles on the line of scrimmage. Until we improve our overall talent and depth on the OL and DL we will not challenge for the SEC or the NC on any consistent basis. Right now LSU and Georgia's programs are at about the same place. Not elite, but a step above the rest of the SEC; and yet not that much better than the rest of the SEC that we won't lose games to teams we've gotten used to dominating over the last decade. Right now and for the forseeable future I see LSU as a top 25 program from year to year. Can we get back to where we have a 5 year stretch of being a top 5 program with our current coaching staff? The further we get away from 2007 the more I question that. We'll know more by the end of this season. From my vantage point, we can lose and we can win all of the remaining SEC games on our schedule. Let's play it out and see where we shake out. 10-2 or 9-3 we feel good. 8-4 or 7-5 Miles should legitimately be on the hotseat in 2010.

What I saw in game 2 was not exactly what I had hoped for, but some improvements did occur.  After 2 games its still too early to tell if the troubling trends we are seeing will be with us all year and if the improvemens we saw in Game 2 from Game 1 will continue.  And yet it's a little clearer than after last weeks game.  At this point the sky is falling crowd and the 10-2 or 11-1 crowd are stepping out a little too soon.  As long as we can see improvement from week to week in some of those areas that seem to be cause for concern (and of course continue to win) we'll have a good feel for this year's Tiger team after we walk off the field in Athens.  By then troubling trends that haven't been fixed will likely be ones we'll see most of the year and will impact our toughest stretch of the year (at Georgia, vs. Florida, and vs. Auburn).

Vanderbilt is a solidly coached team that always has a stingy defense and typically struggles offensively.  This years version includes the same stingy defense and a new approach on offense that emphasizes the spread and a no-huddle attack.  It was good that we were able to face another version of the spread, as we'll need the experience when Florida rolls into town.  While they may run the spread, the talent on the outside at WR for Vanderbilt is mediocre and a big reason they could not throw the ball down the field effectively; and yet also makes me wonder why we gave up so many rushing yards to this team.  This quandary is a nice lead in to this weeks Good and Bad.

The good:

*Game Management.  Jefferson didn't make many plays down the field, but he didn't hurt the team with turnovers either.  He managed the game well enough for us to win the game.  We'll need him to be able to find receivers down the field and still be able to complete passes down the field when he's scrambling when we get into the heart of our SEC schedule.  The rest of the offense also managed the game well, with few big mistakes and by making plays when needed.  We'll need more than a well managed game to beat AL, GA, Ole Miss, Auburn, and ARK.  The game seems to be moving fast for Jefferson still and he's not seeing the whole field.  We need him to continue to improve.       

*#3 WR. Last week I was wondering who would step up to be the third receiver in this offense, and at least for this week we found our answer.  RJ Jackson had a very nice game.  Hopefully his performance will continue.

*Keiland.  With our offensive line struggling to overpower people right now in the running game it looks like this team will have to be more of a finesse running team emphasizing the runing game out of the spread and using the option.  As long as that is the case, it appears Keiland will be a better option at TB than Scott.  Hopefully Keiland will continue his strong running. 

*Overall Defense.  The defense performed much better as a unit this week than we saw in game 1.  Whether or not the Vandy offensive line is just weaker than Washington or if we truly had some improvement, won't be known probably till we play Georgia.  Except for the long TD drive the defense performed well.  The play of the DT's was much better and the Safeties made some plays this week.  Some of the problems we had last week did raise their ugly heads again this week on that Vandy TD drive (i.e. missed tackles and overly aggressive DE's in the running game), but it was only one drive.  They deserve credit for turning it around.  Again whether this was just a weaker opponent or true improvement will play out as we move forward.   

*Secondary.  The entire secondary had a good night.  Vandy was held to less than 100 yards receiving for the night.  They clearly had inferior athletes on the edge and made for a relatively easy night for our DB's in coverage. 

*Game plan.  I think the offensive and defensive game plans were much better this week.  We opened things up on offense and it looked like we had a much better feel for Vandy's offensive tendencies on defense.  I think the weather hampered the game plan somewhat.  I would like to see Dickson a little more involved in the offense, but with so many weapons, you'll be able to say that about several guys each week.

*R. Sheppard.  You can instantly see his potential.  He'll need to be an integral part of our offense by the GA game for us to have a chance during that brutal stretch of games against them, FL, and Auburn. 

The bad:

*DE vs. the Run.  This is a carry over from last week.  Rahim Alem had this same issue last year and doesn't seem to be much better at diagnosing running plays this year.  His sole purpose seems to be to chase the QB, even on running plays.  On the other side of the field the youth and inexperience at DE is showing itself.  Aghayere and Edwards both seem to be too aggressive in their pursuit of the play without having diagnosed where the play is developing.  Teams with better athletes than Vandy will really expose this flaw by taking advantage of our DE aggressiveness.  We need to fix this and fast.  They are losing contain on outside running plays way to regularly. 

*Offensive Line.  They probably deserve a grade of neutral, because there were some highs and lows.  But, they continue to struggle with opening holes between the tackles and the FB play is not promising.  Scott is not a creater.  He needs holes.  The unit also did not provide great protection for Jefferson.  The O-line is one unit that typically will improve as you go through a season, so I'm not overly concerned yet. 

*Down field passing game.  Where are you?  Too many weapons at WR and TE to not have 3-4 big plays in the passing game every week. 

*Tolliver.  Way too many drops for a guy that we need to step up this year. 

To summarize, I saw alot of improvement on defense.  Which is to be expected, from game 1 to game 2, with the team learning a new system and the coaching staff learning it's players tendencies.  Whether the improvement is more related to the opponents strength or to our team actually getting better is yet to be seen.  I don't think we'll know about this defense till we get through the stretch of games at Georgia, vs. Florida, and vs. Auburn.  Offensively Crowton opened up the playbook some more and we got to see R.Sheppard for the first time, but we failed to make any plays down the field.  This team is a work in progress.  To think we'd see anything different coming off an 8-5 season was probably unrealistic.  I thought before the season started this would be a 9-3 team and I still think that's the case.  Our QB is still learning (only 4 starts) and our defense had a major jump to make to be good this year from what we saw last year.   

As others have mentioned, what I saw in game 1 was not exactly what I expected to see, but the opponent, some troubling trends carried over from last year, and circumstances played a role in our performance.  Struggling in a win, during the first game of the year, on the road, against a BCS conference opponent is not something to get too excited about.  However, there were some things that I saw that  if they continue will likely cause us to have a disappointing season.  The good:

*QB.  Jefferson was not perfect, but for his first road test of his career in a hostile environment, he performed very well.  If he can continue to build off that performance, QB will be a strength for us this year.  He seems very poised, seems to have good leadership skills, and demonstrates an ability to make plays with both his feet and his arm.

*Top 2 WR. Lafell and Tolliver are the best tandem in the SEC and maybe the country.  Our skill players on the edge was a clear advantage for us, and one we did not fully take advantage of from a play calling perspective.

*Keiland.  That was the best game I've seen out of Keiland in a while.  His speed matched with Jefferson running the option is a nice package.  Even though their yards were similar, I think Keiland had a better game than Scott.

*Intangibles.  The team did not panic when they got down on the road and were able to respond to each challenge from Washington with a score.  We won despite the longest road trip in our programs history, despite not having any film of Washington with their new coaching staff, despite a courageous effort by the opponent and a less than stellar one by LSU. 

*CB.  Peterson is a beast.  Hawkins and Eugene are very good as well.  The pass play that Eugene gave up was just a perfect throw and route.  He had good coverage.  Our corners in man-to-man are as good as you'll see this year on the same team.

The bad:

*Defensive Line.  This is a carry over from last year.  Last year I expected our line to be great and it was mediocre.  This year I didn't quite know what to expect but believed that because most of these kids were highly recruited, coupled with a new DC and DL coach that they would be pretty good.  What I saw was a line that was undisciplined and very average.  There was little to no discpline in the first half on staying in their lanes to read the run/pass.  Our DE were swallowed up way too many times on running plays off tackle and outside.  Despite 45 passing attempts we only had 1 sack.  This needs to get corrected and quick or every team that can spread us out, will take advantage of our Dline.

*Safety.  Where were they?  Again, like last year, we had trouble covering down the middle of the field. 

*O line.  No push in the running game.  Ok in pass protection. 

*#3 and #4 WR?  Who on this team will step up to help Lafell and Tolliver.  After game 1 we still don't know. 

*Game plan.  Our plan on offense looked to me like we fully expected to go into Seattle and line up and just beat these guys.  We didn't complete our 2nd pass until a few minutes before half time.  Had we recognized our clear advantage at WR and gone into the game with the intent to exploit it from the very begining of the game, this game may have been put away much sooner.  Defensively, the zone coverages, again do not seem to be our forte. 

To summarize, I saw alot to get excited about on the offensive side of the ball.  I can see us being very dangerous offensively as we mature and as Crowton gets more comfortable opening things up.  On defense, I do think we'll get better than what we saw on Saturday, but by how much it's uncertain.  If our D-line play doesn't improve and our ability to cover receivers across the middle doesn't improve, we will struggle defensively against every team that has a decent passing game (ARK, FL, Ole Miss, AL - yes against VT their QB made enough plays to seem serviceable in this area).  Having said all that, one game is too early to draw many conclusions from, but we get another test from a decent team this Saturday.  By the time we roll out of Georgia we'll know more or less if these troubling trends are going to haunt us all year.