Is LSU's Offensive Line The Best In College Football?

Steve Palazzolo with Pro Football Focus updated his top offensive lines through 10 games this season and pegged LSU's unit at No. 1.

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1. LSU Tigers (88.74 rating, on a 0-100 scale)
While the season has been disappointing as a whole for LSU, the offensive line has done its part. When adjusting for competition, the Tigers’ game against Alabama was not bad comparatively, as the Alabama defense has given up virtually nothing to opposing teams on the ground, while creating pressure at an incredibly high rate. The interior of the line is what sets LSU apart, starting with Ethan Pocic, who ranks fifth among centers at 84.2 overall, while guard Josh Boutte has the nation’s No. 6 grade at 84.8 overall, including an 87.1 grade as a run-blocker that ranks third. The other guard spot is manned by Will Clapp, who checks in with a strong 78.4 grade, highlighted with an 86.4 mark in pass protection.

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Palazzolo ranked Auburn at No. 2 (87.23) and Alabama at No. 3 (87.04).

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Methodology:
The PFF O-Line Metric quantifies the performance of an entire offensive line on a statistical basis, using a range of data collected by Pro Football Focus’ highly skilled analysis and player participation teams. For both run-blocking and pass-blocking situations, the offensive line’s performance is assessed against an expected production level, which is derived from a variety of scenarios. On run plays, the key statistic is yards before contact, where the expected gain before contact is set based on factors like the number of defensive players in the box, the run concept called by the offense and the down-and-distance situation. On passing plays, the key stat is pressures allowed in terms of sacks, hits and hurries only by offensive linemen. The expectation there is set by factors such as the down-and-distance situation, the dropback-type by the quarterback and whether a play-action fake was executed. These numbers are then adjusted for the opposition and combined based upon the run-to-pass ratio that each offense plays within to ensure that each offensive line is judged for their performance level within what they are asked to execute.

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