September 4, 2010 8pm ABC
North Carolina comes in with a very highly-touted defense anchored by two projected top 10 NFL draft picks (assuming Marvin Austin gets the chance to play in this game or at all this season). And defense will have to be the key for UNC to pull out this victory. LSU has a stingy defense as usual, but probably will not compare with the bruising, suffocating defenses historically seen in Baton Rouge. The Tigers’ offense struggled last year being outgained by 4 of the 9 teams they defeated. Jordan Jefferson will likely be the starter for LSU at quarterback and at 6’5”, he’s still quite mobile. LSU’s running game and receiving corps will be question marks because of both units’ inexperience, but they will surely try to establish the run early. The Tar Heels have major questions at quarterback with Senior TJ Yates coming into this season after a terrible 2009, which is putting it mildly. Many claim that this was because of North Carolina’s offensive line having so many injuries, but play-calling for Yates rarely included passes beyond 5-10 yards, if that. This will have to change in this game and in this season if this team wants to be successful and not depend on grinding every single game out to the finish with their stout defense. Receivers for the ‘Heels, while youthful, have shown some strides in the spring and the unit will rely on Greg Little to carry them, once again, unless he is suspended from this game by NCAA.
Prediction: My gut feeling initially said my alma mater, North Carolina, wins in a 6-3 slugfest…and this can definitely happen if the current players under NCAA investigation are not suspended. In reality, though, I see both players sitting this one out. The defenses cancel each other out and unless there are big offense plays, turnovers and special teams will be the difference in this game. The Tigers’ defensive line wears down the Heels’ offensive front, helping LSU force a late turnover that leads to the deciding points of the game. Furthermore, the boys in Carolina Blue have not won in the beautiful city of Hotlanta* since the 2001 Peach Bowl against an Auburn squad led by Dameyune Craig, where Ronald Curry finished his career with a 16-10 win over a quality SEC foe. North Carolina’s last regular season victory in the ATL dates back to 1997 over Georgia Tech, 16-13. A bit of a coincidence since LSU won their last game in Atlanta at the Peach Bowl** in 2008 over Georgia Tech, 38-3.
So, will it be LSU “burning down” the Heels as Sherman did oh so long ago? Or will it be the school best known for basketball prominence putting a whooping on the Bayou Bengals in the Georgia Dome, as the Dawgs did in the 2003 SEC Championship Game?
Reality bites: LSU 14, UNC 10. Should be a good game and close, too, folks.
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* Hotlanta being a moniker for Atlanta that was used to exhaustion in the 1990’s and is now more of a despised nickname that tourists and transplants use for the city.
** The game is now called the Chick-fil-A bowl but I refuse to call it that, and the reason being I hate corporate ownership of bowls. I will never hate Chick-fil-A and live on it at least once every two weeks, FYI.
Credit to Phil Steele publications and ESPN.com’s archive schedules for both teams is due.
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Ed. note: This is (almost) completely the work of St. George, not joaj34. As of publishing, it is unlikely that Marvin Austin and Greg Little will play, a revelation that probably seriously changes this post.
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