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LSU to Chick-Fil-A Bowl
LSU will be going Atlanta to face Clemson in the Chick-Fil-A Bowl on New Year's Eve. Thanks to a BCS reshuffle with the addition of a MAC champion, the Tigers found themselves in the SEC's designated fifth (FIFTH!) bowl. This will be LSU's sixth trip to Atlanta for the Peach/Chick-Fil-A Bowl and it's never lost. Not only that, LSU has met Clemson before in this game, in 1996. That was another year LSU was passed on by higher bowls for teams they had already beaten.
By being the fifth-place bowl, that means that UGA, Texas A&M and South Carolina were all picked for bowls before LSU. Two of those teams lost to LSU, are behind them in the BCS rankings, yet got picked for bowl games before LSU for whatever reason. If you needed any more fuel for the LSU-gets-shafted-by-the-SEC-continually fire, you just got some.
I could spend this entire entry on how LSU got the raw end of the deal again. I could go into how head-to-head is always used against LSU when bowl season comes, but when it would help the Tigers it's ignored. I could go into how LSU-OU and LSU-Michigan would have been better games than how they worked out. I could go on about how the SEC schedules the best out of division teams for LSU but gives Alabama a cakewalk. I could talk about how the league office reportedly lobbied to "protect" the SEC Championship Game loser Georgia by forcing the Capital One Bowl's hand into picking them. Something they could, should, have done to keep their most successful program of the past decade from falling all the way to a fith place bowl. I could mention that LSU will mark only the fifth time a top 10 team will have played in the Chick-Fil-A Bowl, with LSU already being one of those five, just to further illustrate how LSU gets no help when bowls are selected. I could go into how of the I could do all of these things, but they wouldn't get us anywhere.
Rather, let's discuss what is positive about this game. Atlanta is an excellent destination & I would take it over any of the Florida bowls in a heart beat. The city has always treated LSU well and its an easy trip for fans. Not only that, LSU will be opening next season in the Dallas in the Cowboys Classic so LSU fans will get to go there soon anyhow.
Clemson comes into the game with a high powered offense led by QB Tahj Boyd & speedy wideouts Sammy Watkins and DeAndre Hopkins. Remember those shaky LSU DBs we saw the past couple weeks? Well this matchup should be interesting again. We'll get to see if some of the young guys who've been picked on lately learn anything over the long layover.
Last year's misgivings in New Orleans aside, Les Miles-led teams always perform extremely well in bowl games. In the two Chick-Fil-A Bowls he's coached at LSU, the Tigers have outscored their opponents 78-6. If anything, we'll see an offense that continues to get great throw up some nasty numbers against a weak ACC defense that will set the team up for another run at all the marbles in 2013. We've seen numerous LSU quarterbacks put together great bowl games to set up great seasons thereafter. This game could be the perfect situation for Zach Mettenberger to really set the table for next season.
But still...thanks for nothing, SEC.
I completely agree with you dudebro2. I just don't want the team fixated on being the fifth pick. They need to concentrate on beating a good Clemson team that lights it up through the air.
The sports department at LSU should certainly make some noise with the SEC. I have been a fan for 54 seasons, and I've seen a whole lot of it over the years. I hope they raise hell with the SEC and get the point across.
SNS - I hear you stop whining and focus on the task in front of us. On one hand I say, you are right but on the other hand I say no we as LSU fans and the administration should start ratcheting up the pressure and scream as loud and long as possible. Be the squeaky wheel that hopefully gets the grease, why because we have earned it.
Just look at the last 15 years and you can see how badly LSU has continually gotten the short end of the stick. What do we do complain for 1 minute and then go about saying ok we can't undo what is done so stop whining and do the job at hand. Well we can't undo what is done, but by the fans and administration not letting this issue go away and to continue to make noise, maybe just maybe we can affect the future because clearly how it has been handled in the past does not work, so what do we have to lose. Look you don't have to look at just the bowl games over the past 15 years to see how bad the SEC screws LSU just look at the 2013 football schedule. LSU gets to replace USC with a trip to play UGA between the hedges and oh by the way we get our usual game against UF. So besides the always tough SEC west schedule we get to play the currently ranked #'s 3 & 6 teams in the country. Now take a look at our Gump brethren to the East they get to replace that vaunted Mizzou team they played this year, with that powerhouse Kentucky team next year along with Tenn as their East Division games. Are you freaking kidding me???
This is such BS, something in Birmingham has to change!!!! I mean it is not a conspiracy until the facts and data to back up a conspiracy continually prove it.
But still...........REALLY thanks for nothing, SEC. You guys are so impartial you would think the whole damn office is full of Bama grads. Oh wait it mostly is!!!
It's time to stop gripping about what bowl game we should, could have been invited. It's time to get prepared to play Clemson in one of the five best bowl games. It's a good match up, and we will see if our secondary corrects their missed tackles and assignments from the last 3 games of the season. I choose to believe they will. A good performance will be a great springboard for the 2013 season (which should be a really good one for the Tigers). LSU has always been treated well in Atlanta, and it should be a good game. A win would give us a 11 win season. Although, it isn't as good as we hoped in the beginning of 2012, it's still very respectable.
