Les Miles doesn't have a set plan for how he uses quarterbacks Jarrett Lee and Jordan Jefferson, other than the fact that both will continue to play for No. 1 LSU.
Lee has started every game this year but has seen his playing time decrease with the return of Jefferson, who sat out four games while suspended for his role in an off-campus fight.
The tag-team situation has worked well for the Tigers, who have defeated Kentucky, Florida and Tennessee by a combined 114-25 in the three games since Jefferson returned.
“Jarrett Lee continues to do a great job of doing the things we ask him to do. He throws the ball well and manages the game,” Miles said. “I enjoyed the fact that Jordan Jefferson comes in and certainly his team does. He gives us a different style, or change up, if you will, offensively. We will continue to do that.”
Jefferson played 28 snaps in Saturday’s victory over Tennessee, scored on a 3-yard run in the third quarter and finished as LSU’s second-leading rusher with 73 yards on 14 carries.
Lee was 13-for-17 for 138 yards and three touchdowns.
“We’re moving the ball, we’re putting points on the board and we’re winning games, so whatever we need to do to keep doing that, that’s what we’re going to do,” Lee said.
The rotation is nothing new at LSU. Jefferson and Lee have been splitting time since 2008, except only now Lee is starting and Jefferson is coming off the bench. LSU is 20-7 in Jefferson's 27 career starts and 12-4 in Lee's 16.
"We're going to go just like we've gone," Miles said Saturday. "It's going to be the offensive coaches’ call and my call and it's that simple."
Burning question
Can South Carolina’s defense lead the Gamecocks to the SEC East title?
With star running back Marcus Lattimore out for the year with a knee injury, they will need even more from their defense.
South Carolina has forced 24 turnovers, which is tied for most in the nation, and it’s second in the SEC with 14 sacks. The Gamecocks lead the SEC in passing defense (133.7 yards per game) and are fourth in the conference in total defense (277.6).
"We're a team, so if the offense is struggling, the defense has to pick them up and vice versa," safety D.J. Swearinger said after a 14-12 victory over Mississippi State on Saturday.
Swearinger had a career-high 12 tackles and sealed the victory with an interception against Mississippi State, but the Gamecocks have relied on defensive linemen Melvin Ingram, Jadeveon Clowney and Devin Taylor, and Antonio Allen, who plays the spur position (a linebacker/safety hybrid), most of the season.
Ingram has 5 1/2 sacks, Clowney has four and Ingram is fifth in the SEC with 60 tackles.
In focus
Chance Warmack (Westlake) is becoming one of Alabama's top offensive linemen.
The junior guard had his best game of the season in the Crimson Tide’s 52-7 victory over Mississippi on Saturday with five pancake blocks. He didn’t commit a penalty, miss an assignment or allow a sack or a pressure for the top grade on Alabama’s line.
Warmack started all 13 games as a sophomore and all seven this season. He helped Alabama compile a season-high 615 yards of offense against Ole Miss while running back Trent Richardson set a career high with 183 yards rushing.
"It doesn't matter if he has a broken hand or broken leg, he's going to come hit you," Alabama linebacker Dont'a Hightower said. "Sometimes I feel kind of sorry for the opposing team's linebackers because they might not have seen it on film or they might have looked over him. I'm definitely sure some of those Ole Miss linebackers have seen the effect of Chance when he comes through that hole."
Etc.
Tennessee freshman linebacker A.J. Johnson (Gainesville) had 11 tackles against LSU. ... Kenny Miles (Brookwood), who led South Carolina with 626 yards rushing in 2009, has missed four games this season with a sprained wrist, but likely will see more action now with Lattimore out for the season. Miles has one carry for 1 yard this year. ... Kentucky freshman running back Josh Clemons (Whitewater) will miss the rest of the season with a torn meniscus. Clemons leads the Wildcats with 279 yards rushing and has two of the team's three rushing TDs this season. ... Tennessee sophomore right tackle Ja'Wuan James (North Gwinnett) has started all 19 games of his collegiate career.
Quotable
"I could give a [expletive] about all that. Excuse my French. I mean, come on. Let's talk about the game. What year are we talking about when we're not going to play Tennessee? 2025? I'm just hoping I can still go to the lake then, still walk around and go on a pontoon boat." – Alabama coach Nick Saban, reacting to questions about the Heisman Trophy and future schedules.
"It is not fun. Winning is how you spell fun. It is not a good feeling to lose. You want to win. That is all you try to do each and every Saturday." – Mississippi coach Houston Nutt on the Rebels' nine-game SEC losing streak.
By the numbers
8 – Consecutive games that LSU has won by double digits, tying the school record set in 1936. LSU defeated Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl to end last season and has started this year with seven straight wins.
23.0 – Punt return average for Mississippi's Jeff Scott, who has returned six punts for 138 yards and a touchdown this season.
Schedule
Jacksonville State at Kentucky, noon (ESPNU)
Arkansas at Mississippi, 12:21 p.m. (WPCH)
Auburn at LSU, 3:30 p.m. (CBS)
Army at Vanderbilt, 7 p.m. (ESPNU)
Tennessee at Alabama, 7:15 p.m. (ESPN2)
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