The games this week turned out to be very interesting – both good and bad. LSU once again proved that it is dominating force in the SEC. The offense looked really good and the defense played outstanding as usual. I especially liked beating Tennessee because of last year’s debacle where we almost lost the game, but were saved by a penalty against the Volunteers for having 12 men on the field. This year, there was none of that and LSU put them down with a 38-11 victory. Next weekend is Auburn.

Also, on Sunday the BSC poll came out with LSU as No. 1. A lot of people are saying that Alabama is the better team and rightfully deserves the spot. I don’t know about that, but Nov. 5 were certainly decide the issue. Since I really dislike Alabama, I will continuely hope for a victory so that I can tell Tide fans to stick it. Geaux Tigers!

The Saints played poorly from what I heard. As usual, they had to come back from losing but proved unable in the concluding quarter to get the win. I was not feeling so hot after church, so I had to go to sleep instead of watching. Much better now, thank you. I did hear about and later watch the video of Graham accidently hitting Coach Peyton. He is down with a torn ligament and maybe a fracture. Best wishes to him on a full recovery.

Today, for some other news, I heard that Tyrone Mathieu, Spencer Ware, and Therold Simon were suspended for at least one game – the Auburn game. It was supposedly for some time of drug issue. I don’t have the full story yet, so I will not assume either guilt or innocence. Coach Miles is usual articulate self here. All I can say is #$%@&#@%#@$%! That out of the way, I hope that it is nothing too serious that would keep them out of the Alabama game. If it is, then they should be thrown off the team. It would hurt to lose two of our biggest play makers, but the rules must be followed. Especially on the heels of the Jefferson issue earlier in the season.

Ah, tonight’s game was a great game. I was unable to see the first half of the game due to work, but I got the gist of it from the announcers. Jarrett Lee played great. He had 27 attempts for 21 completions, with 1 interception. The one mistake when he was pressured quite a bit and threw it into a well played zone coverage. The two RB’s, Ware and Ford, are just machines.

Defensively, the Tigers are almost too scary. In the half that I saw, they were getting really deep penetration to the QB. The Miss. St. QB was sacked something like 3 times and the offense had over 13 plays for loss. Claiborne had 2 interceptions. One was just a beauty. In the 2^nd half. Like I said, scary.

The only problem that I really had was during the 3^rd quarter when both LSU’s offense and defense were becoming penalty prone. It was one after another. Roughing the passer, offsides, holding, etc. The team needs to build a little more discipline and cohesion. Or, Miles needs to chew the hell out of them. Both of these options may work.

On to a personal issue that I wish to address. I am a bad sport, by which I mean that I like to gloat. In Conan the Barbarian, Conan is asked by a nomad leader, “What is best in life?” He gives the ultimate response: “To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of their women.” I cannot describe the joy that I feel when I see the tears and despair on the faces of a crowd whose team is about to be beaten by LSU. This is especially true of Alabama, Auburn and Florida. Mississippi State, Old Miss and Arkansas also warm the cockles. I know this gloating is not the best response because I have felt the same emotions they feel in years pass and will feel them again when LSU eventually loses. Yet, is it really a bad thing?

The noted columnist and commentator, George Will, once stated that “Football combines the two worst things about America: it is violence punctuated by committee meetings.” In one aspect, he is correct. Football bares a tiny passing similarity to ancient gladiator games only in the sense that audience picks sides to cheer on as they bring violence to the opposing team. For some, this desire for mauling is lubricated with personal choices of alcoholic beverages. 

However, in its larger sense, George Will misses the entire point of football. Violence is an inescapable fact of life. Short periods of peace are punctuated by our many wars. Crime is increasing as our economic vitality withers. To smother us in protective padding does all of us a disservice, as future generations will learn from our current nanny-statism. Football, in its current incarnation, is violence regulated and controlled. We, as the audience, do not sit in our coliseums gleefully waiting for the chance to point our thumbs up or down, signaling death or continued life for an injured participant. Only the idiotic cheer at the injury of an opposing player. Believing that it is a bloody business, as some do, dishonors the sport – and it is a sport – as well as the efforts of the players. Football is about measuring yourself and your team against another person and team equally motivated and trained. For those of us who are LSU fans, it also provides yearly doses of one-upmanship over the rest of the South. To be quite honest, SEC football is the only football that matters.

This does not even delve into the many metaphors that football contributes towards. My own personal favorite is that football is like life. Each day we get up, either moving the ball forward or backward. Sometimes we score and sometimes others score at our expense. In the end, we either win or lose, going on to enjoy the after party.

Now on to Saturday’s LSU-Oregon game. I was quite pleased that Jarred Lee was going to start the game due to Jefferson’s legal issues. Not that I feel animosity towards Jefferson, but I have always favored Lee. To many, he is only remembered as the quarterback that threw so many pick-6’s during his Freshman year. When you take an inexperienced rookie and throw him to the wolves, you should not be surprised at the result.  He played well in this game and, I believe, has partially vindicated himself. Many of his passes were on the money and a good many of his incomplete passes were due to some of the receivers having seemingly coated their hands with butter before the game. The two RB’s, Ware and Ford, give the team a strong running attack.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Ducks had a difficult time moving the ball. LSU’s defense is just damn scary. I cannot wait to see how they do against some of the stronger SEC offenses. Oregon had a little play in the first half, but when I thought LSU’s D would be worn down in the second, they ate it up. I am very pleased.

Because I am a devoted Tiger fan, I want to alert everyone to this film, Ole War Skule, and leave the trailer here for your viewing pleasure. It can be found for purchase at www.olewarskulemovie.com.