Like Texas, LSU won a New Year’s Six bowl by a single score over a highly hyped opponent. And with their imminent showdown with the Longhorns, these two will likely be clustered in the preseason AP Top 25 in hopes that they win in Week 1 and remain side-by-side in the poll for their duel in Austin.
With Joe Burrow coming back, LSU looks poised to make noise in the SEC and national races. All of Burrow’s top four targets in the 2018 passing game are back for the new campaign, bolstering chances of a big year in what could be a wide-open offense. Ed Orgeron’s crew lost Nick Brossette from the running game, but Clyde Edwards-Helaire is back to tromp over opposing defenses.
In terms of LSU’s defense, the Tigers lost several key cogs. Linebacker and top tackler Devin White was drafted fifth overall by Tampa Bay in the NFL Draft, while cornerback Greedy Williams was a second-round selection. Their departures will be tough but not impossible to manage, with guys like Derek Stingley Jr. looking ready to step up into prominent roles immediately.
After a warmup game against Georgia Southern in Death Valley, the Bayou Bengals take on Texas. Things don’t really heat up after that for LSU until homecoming against Florida on October 12. The toughest stretch, though, is a road swing at Alabama and at Ole Miss that will really set their position in the SEC West pecking order.