USA Today Coaches Poll: LSU is #1, edges #2 Alabama and #3 USC

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LSU will start the season ranked No. 1 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches' Poll, which again is flush with teams from the nation's most dominant league.

Defensive back and return specialist Tyrann Mathieu, aka Honey Badger, will help lead an LSU defense that allowed just 11.3 points a game in 2011.

The Southeastern Conference, whose teams have won the last six Bowl Championship Series titles, has five of the top 10 teams and leads all conferences with seven teams ranked in the top 25 that was unveiled Thursday.

The Big 12 has six teams, including newcomers West Virginia and TCU.

LSU received 18 first-place votes, two fewer than second-place Alabama. Southern California, which received 19 first-place votes, is third. Oklahoma, which opened last season No. 1, and Oregon round out the top five.

This the first time since USA TODAY Sports began administering the coaches' poll in 1991 that the No. 1 team in the preseason had fewer first-place votes than the runner-up. The 15-point spread between first and third is also the tightest of any preseason poll in that span.

This marks only the second time in the BCS era, which began with the 1998 season, that teams that played in the previous BCS title game began the season Nos. 1 and 2 in the coaches' poll. The other time was 1999 with Florida State opening No. 1, followed by Tennessee. FSU was No. 1 every week that season en route to the national title.

"We are fortunate to be at a place that allows you to compete for that (No. 1) spot," LSU coach Les Miles told USA TODAY Sports in a statement. "We recognize that it (No. 1 ranking) is more of a reflection of a body of work and understand that right now, it's a spot that we hold and not one that has been earned. It's a position that we enjoy. Now we have to go out and play in order to keep

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