It's a big football weekend in Southeastern Louisiana.
On Saturday, LSU hosts the undefeated Tennessee Volunteers tomorrow at Tiger Stadium. On Sunday, the New Orleans Saints host the Seattle Seahawks in the Superdome. The big question for fans of both teams: Do they have a chance of pulling off victories this weekend?
LSU enters its game ranked 25th in the Associated Press Writers Poll. Tennessee is ranked eighth. WWL's Mike Detillier says the Tigers have their work cut out for them.
"You're jumping into a track-meet-type game here," Detillier told WWL's Tommy Tucker.
Detillier said LSU's body of work both offensively and defensively has been inconsistent this season. That, he says, makes it difficult to predict how well LSU will fare against Tennessee.
"It's typical of a first-year head coach with a new squad that they're looking for that identity on both sides of the football," Detillier said.
Detillier says Tennesse's defense is prone to giving up lots of points, which could bode well for the the Tigers. Still, he think the Volunteers will come away with a narrow victory.
"Points are going to be scored in this game," Detillier said. "I like Tennessee, and I think they cover, but this game is going to be close. I think LSU can hang with them if they can make some throws downfield. I have seen Tennessee's pass defense, and they don't get a great pass rush."
Meanwhile, Detillier says the New Orleans Saints need to feed running back Alvin Kamara the ball.
"He's had some big games against Seattle," Detillier said of Kamara. "Here's a team that's had some difficulty stopping the run. They've had difficulty stopping the screen play. Guess what I'm running: I'm running the football, and I'm throwing the screen out in the flat."
Detillier said the Saints defense must shut down Seahawks running back Rashaad Penny and force Seattle quaterback Geno Smith to throw the ball.
"I'm not going to let him beat me," Detillier said of Penny. "I have to stop him. That's priority number one."
Detillier believes the Saints will end their three-game losing streak by beating the Seahawks, but he thinks the game will closer than the 5.5-point spread set by Vegas sports books.
"I think this is a field goal game. I think the Saints win it, but the Saints haven't played well in the Dome as of late."
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