GAMEDAY: LSU vs UNC

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Tigers looking for answers inside the Georgia Dome

By RANDY ROSETTA
Advocate sportswriter
Published: Sep 4, 2010 - Page: 1C 

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/102205314.html

It doesn’t take a lengthy history lesson on LSU football to embrace the notion that expectations leading up to other recent seasons trump the 2010 campaign.

In terms of anticipation, though, the sixth season under Les Miles might be unparalleled.

Simply put, there are a whole lot of questions about what lies ahead over the next four months.

No. 21-ranked LSU launches the new season against suddenly depleted 18th-ranked North Carolina in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. ESPN’s “GameDay” pregame show will also originate from Atlanta.

With a matchup of two top-25 teams for a third straight year, the game in Atlanta has taken on the feel of a bowl game to start the season.

“It’s one of the first big games of the season, and we want to go out and show our true colors,” Tigers quarterback Jordan Jefferson said.

There is certainly some luster missing, though.

Thirteen Tar Heels players will not play today in the wake of a dual NCAA investigation cloud hovering over the UNC program the past several weeks.

The school announced Friday that 13 players — nine starters, including seven from a defense regarded as one of the best in the country — will sit out the season opener: defensive tackle Marvin Austin; defensive ends Robert Quinn, Michael McAdoo and Linwan Euwell; cornerbacks Charles Brown, Kendric Burney and Brian Gupton; strong safeties Da’Norris Searcy, Jonathan Smith and Deunta Williams; wide receiver Greg Little; and tailbacks Shaun Draughn and Ryan Houston.

Two defensive starters, linebackers Quan Sturdivant and Bruce Carter, were cleared (although they did not travel with the team party on Friday; they arrived in Atlanta later in the day).

For the new-look Tigers, tonight’s showdown is the opening act of a season of new hope, featuring a revamped roster and the potential for at least a dozen true and redshirt freshmen to have an impact.

There is still a deep and diverse pool of talent for LSU, anchored by plenty of familiar key veterans: Jefferson, Terrence Toliver and Joseph Barksdale on offense; Kelvin Sheppard, Patrick Peterson and Drake Nevis on defense.

But the infusion of freshmen and two less-than-spectacular seasons since the 2007 BCS national championship seem to have rendered the Tigers’ passionate fans more skeptical than usual.