re: Am I the only one who's not convinced this D is elite?

If you look back at the first half of the Wisconsin game, you can see that the Tiger's front 7 didn't get physically dominated as much as they got confused and completely out schemed. The Badgers do a very good job of mixing up their run game, and they happen to have the best RB we will see all season, hands down. You saw defensive players miss assignments and get out of their gaps until the third quarter. But once they got a bead on what the Badgers were doing, they got control of the game and never looked back.

Since then, we've seen the D play with a LOT more discipline and with few missed assignments and mistakes. SHSU and ULM may not be good teams, but mistakes and lack of discipline will create problems no matter who you are playing. It seems that Chavis has nipped that problem in the bud, and gotten these guys on the same page. Now, they should have the confidence to face a much bigger and stronger opponent.

I don't see MSU causing us the same kinds of problems that Wisconsin did. They don't have an RB that could carry Gordon's jock, and don't use the same kind of scheme, either. They're a power team with solid, experienced skill guys, a good dual threat QB, and a good short passing game. I personally think this is a good matchup for the LSU D. I don't think MSU has the kinds of WRs that will get separation from our secondary. If that is the case and we load the LOS and still limit Prescott's passing- game over. They depend on balance and spreading the D out so Prescott can do his thing. If he can't consistently make plays against man coverage, they are in trouble.

2 superb games vs A&M have shown me that Chavis knows what to do with a dual threat QB. We will bottle him up and make him throw the ball more than they want. This is a perfect setup, since our D line doesn't produce the best pass rush. In this game, they won't have to. It's all about coverage and contain. Without true gamebreakers at RB and WR, MSU is going to find it hard to move the ball Saturday.

So yeah, maybe this front 7 isn't elite. At least not yet. But the secondary is good enough that they won't have to be against most teams. They just need to be solid, disciplined, and tackle well.