I have not posted on here in awhile but wanted to put in my $.02. I'm blessed to be an LSU alum as well as one of two smaller teams with very uninteresting and passionless athletic programs. We're fortunate to love a team which is nationally relevant, because it's not all that common. Usually we win, sometimes we don't.

I hate the general excuse in life, "hey, it could always be worse," but things are what they are, and we are still in elite company.

Many are frustrated because of the expectations have fallen short relative to the associated costs of supporting LSU, talent, and the success of rivals. I get it.

Let's look at the programs since 2008, after the National Championship. In that time period, we're arguably a top 5 program. Bama is clearly tops. LSU, Oregon, Ohio State, Oklahoma to a lesser extent are probably most consistent. Auburn, Florida obviously have their rings and some down years. Stanford has been good. Boise and TCU have been good, but are not a threat and have fallen off. Texas and USC have declined significantly from the beginning of the decade with greater resources and history than LSU.

That's pretty elite company, as it should be. LSU is relevant, very relevant.

Now let's look at how we've done vs. our biggest rivals:
Alabama: 2-4, likely 2-5
Auburn: 5-1
Florida: 3-3
Ole Miss: 3-3
Arkansas: 3-2, likely 4-2
Combined that's 16-13, likely 17-14.

LSU's record against those teams when they were ranked at the end of the year? Anywhere from 4-12 to 6-11 depending on how this year goes and without a winning record against any of the four teams when they were at their best.

That's what's most disappointing, IMO. It may not always be pretty, but LSU takes care of business against bad teams, Ole Miss being the exception. But, we're losing more than we win at the most critical times over the last 5.5 years.

So, that's where we are. We had hoped for a championship, or at least a net improvement from last year. Odds are good we will be in a very similar situation as last year at best, barring a miracle turn of events, even a win over Bama will not significantly help our situation. Likely, our peak is the Capital One Bowl. Another CFA or Cotton Bowl appearance is most likely. Knowing this in October pretty much sucks at LSU.

Looking forward, the prevailing fear is that we're losing our edge, be it true or not. LSU was basically a half step behind Bama, now there are legit reasons why that gap is widening and ATM, Ole Miss, and Auburn are closing quick. We have huge recruiting battles left as well as the two biggest games of the year. Much is yet undetermined.

So, where do we go? Love it or leave it. It is what is. We're disappointed, but obviously we all love LSU football for many reasons. Enjoy the ride or get off. The choice is yours to make.

Cliffs:
-We're very much an elite program
-We've struggled vs. our biggest rivals post 2007
-Much yet undetermined in the next 4-5 months that will greatly impact the future
-Enjoy the ride or GTFO

This post was edited on 10/22/13 at 12:27 pm