The LSU Tigers are once again in the AP Poll Top 10.
The LSU Tigers didn't face much to gain in the rankings from beating up on the McNeese St. Cowboys on Saturday night, but a loss by a conference foe helped them climb back into the AP Poll's Top 10.
The latest version of the AP Top 25 rankings was released on Sunday afternoon. In it, the Tigers jumped up one spot to No. 10 overall. The only major tumble that occurred was the Florida Gators falling out of the top 10, down eight spots to No. 16, after losing 45-17 to the Missouri Tigers.
LSU is now the fifth-highest-ranked SEC team, sitting right behind the No. 9 Ole Miss Rebels. This just further proves that the Tigers still have everything within grasp despite a loss on their record. They just have to keep winning games.
While they didn't exactly win anyone over by putting up 63 points against the Cowboys, the offense should feel more confident after their overall performance. They put up 731 yards as a team, which is the second-most in school history.
Sam Leavitt had another day of sitting in the pocket and delivering passes. He was 18-of-23 with 176 yards, three touchdowns and an interception. He also had two touchdown passes dropped by Winston Watkins Jr., one of which then led to the interception. It was a good day overall for the quarterback.
LSU's rushing attack combined for 53 carries for 367 yards and six touchdowns. Harlem Berry had a career day, taking 15 carries for 125 yards and a score. He has seemingly slipped into that RB2 role behind Dilin Jones, who is still the starter. Stacy Gage made the most of his snaps in this game, though, with six carries for 110 yards and two touchdown runs.
The Tigers' defense was as smothering as usual until a couple of broken plays in the third quarter. The starters handled business, though. Princewill Umanmielen, Deuce Geralds and Dominick McKinley all ended up with sacks. Tamarcus Cooley had his second-straight game with an interception. McNeese St. had 196 yards as a team, with two plays accounting for 107 of those yards. This type of performance has come to be expected.
LSU will face off against an impressive Kentucky Wildcats team, who will certainly be annoyed that they fell out of the Top 25 after a 35-34 overtime win over the South Carolina Gamecocks. Make no mistake, though: the Wildcats are riding high after three straight wins. Should be a fun game.
