LSU prepares for Florida's offense, not its quarterback

BATON ROUGE, La. -- Every week LSU's coaches hand their specific position group a tip sheet.

It's the "what to" and "what not to do" against a certain opponent.

Safety Chad Jones on the upcoming game against the Gators: 'You know how to prepare for them and you know what not to do.' (US Presswire)

To face Tim Tebow, or not to face Tebow. That's the question of the last two weeks in Tigerland.

Yet it's fairly obvious by talking to the LSU players that they've been given a universal top tip before Tigers coach Les Miles clicked print on his computer: Prepare for the team, not for who's playing quarterback.

"I'm told that [Florida backup quarterback John] Brantley has good feet and can move it and run the football as well," Miles said. "Their offense has great, strategic definition, and I suspect that they'll do similar things. They'll speak to the talents of the guys that they have, but we're going to prepare for the Florida offense and adjust that feel based on who's the quarterback."

Tigers safety Chad Jones said dwelling on it would be the worst mistake LSU could make. That's why he and his teammates are preparing as if Tebow and Brantley both will play.

"With Tebow or without Tebow, they are a great offense," linebacker Harry Coleman said. "They can run a play, we have a missed tackle and then their band could be playing. We've got to tackle and play hard. No missed assignments. Tune in and be ready to play."

The Tigers have beaten Tebow. The Tigers have lost to Tebow.

LSU reveled in the ecstasy of beating the Tebow-led Gators 28-24 in at Death Valley in 2007, propelling the Tigers to their second national championship in four years. The Tigers also endured the agony of being clubbed by the eventual national champion Gators 51-21 at the Swamp last year.

Jones and several other LSU players understand the fortunes of tip-top preparation and the misfortunes of faulty pregame execution.

"You know how it is to play a good game against these guys," Jones said. "Then you definitely know how it feels to be at the lowest of lows against a Florida team where you just get that sick feeling in your stomach. You know how to prepare for them and you know what not to do.

"After last year, you know how not to practice and how not to respond on the field. We're fighting through that and working harder this week than ever."

Having been supreme and having been creamed against Florida has given LSU a better understanding of how to prepare. Because Tebow or not, here come the Gators.

It's what led Coleman to say, "Same team, same offense."

It's the attitude LSU's defense, in particular, heeded throughout the week and will look to adhere to until the early Sunday morning hours.

Coleman said players have been piling into each others' apartments and dorm rooms all week to cram in as much film work as possible to prepare for the complexities of the Gators offense. The LSU players feel this week's game is that important.

"This is one of the biggest games in college football and of course everyone has been looking forward to it," Jones said. "Everyone is paying extra attention to film. We want to treat it like every other week, but we know it's a big game. We need to come out victorious.

"We'll do a little bit of extra film for this game because they have so many different formations. Players want to take a little bit of extra time out of their schedules outside of the regular hours. We just take it upon ourselves to do it because we know how big this is for our season."

After surrendering a slew of yardage during their first three wins, the defense was on the verge of letting a less-talented Mississippi State squad pick up one of its biggest upsets in recent memory. But the defense saved the day with a goal-line stand.

Jones was literally the game-changer against the Bulldogs with a 93-yard punt return for a touchdown. And he feels the turning point for the LSU defense was when he batted away a third-and-goal pass from Tyson Lee to help secure the tenuous win in Starkville.

The Tigers put up their best defensive fight of the season in Athens last week, and without it, the cache of this Saturday's game would have fizzled. Linebacker Kelvin Sheppard said it may sound simple but it's what worked against Georgia and what defensive coordinator John Chavis has been preaching all week to the defense -- stay gap sound.

The Tigers plugged the gaps as they only surrendered 44 total rushing yards (1.8 yards per carry) against Georgia and only allowed 13 points at Samford Stadium. It was LSU's first win at Georgia since 1987.

"We really focused on that last week against Georgia," Sheppard said. "You've got to take the same technique into this game because Florida has all that speed in the backfield. They have these backs with world-class speed. If you jump out your gaps and give them a crease, they can take it the distance."