LSU's dominating defense is falling back to earth

Two weeks ago, LSU's defense was considered the best in college football and had the numbers to prove it.

The Tigers' defense pounded quarterbacks so fiercely that LSU's first four opponents didn't finish the games with their starting QBs on the field.

It seemed like LSU's defensive line lived in opposing backfields, and strong safety Craig Steltz ran around waiting for interceptions to flutter into his hands.

Then, LSU ran into quarterbacks Tim Tebow of Florida and Andre Woodson of Kentucky. And with spread offenses and schemes designed to neutralize LSU's pass rush, the Tigers' vaunted defense has suddenly looked mortal.

The Tigers had to rally to beat Florida, 28-24, but lost to Kentucky, 43-37, in three overtimes. Florida and Kentucky combined to score points in all 15 trips into the red zone, and 11 of those were touchdowns.

What both Tebow and Woodson did was use a lot of three-step drops to get rid of the ball quickly. Also, Florida and Kentucky incorporated rollouts to neutralize blitzes. LSU didn't have a sack against Kentucky.

LSU coach Les Miles said after watching game film that his defenders are thinking too much.

"They're in position to make really strong plays, and they're trying to be in two places where they really only have a responsibility to one," Miles said. "They're slow to react because they're thinking about another spot. It's well intended, but it needs to be corrected. It's basically attention to detail on the defense."

The Tigers, for at least the rest of the regular season, won't face a quarterback as good as Tebow or Woodson.

LSU may have gotten a false sense of security about its defense, because none of the Tigers' first five opponents - Mississippi State, Virginia Tech, Middle Tennessee, South Carolina and Tulane - are ranked in the top 85 teams in total offense in Division 1-A.

The quality of the Florida and Kentucky offenses obviously stunned the Tigers.

"We need to start coming up with big plays," said LSU all-America defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey. "Offenses have been throwing a lot of things at us."

Great Year: Arkansas senior safety Kevin Woods of Memphis Fairley is enjoying the best year of his college career. He has 37 tackles, including 28 solo.

"Kevin has been outstanding," Arkansas coach Houston Nutt said. "He's has been a leader for us in the secondary and on special teams, a hard hitter with great character. He's battling a shoulder injury, it's stinging him, but he's fighting through it. He brings a lot of energy to our team."

Boring, But Effective: Auburn's offensive game plan got more conservative as last Saturday's game at Arkansas progressed. But that was by design, said Auburn offensive coordinator Al Borges, who was happy to escape Fayetteville with a 9-7 win on three field goals.

"I don't feel good about only scoring nine points, but I feel good about winning," Borges said. "You have to play a little bit to how your defense is playing. When they're playing good, what you do is you try to keep a lot of the cute plays out of your offense."

Carroll To Stay: If he stays healthy, Mississippi State true freshman quarterback Wesley Carroll probably won't be budged from the starting spot until further notice.

"He (Carroll) is coming along a lot faster than I thought he would," State coach Sylvester Croom said. "He is throwing the ball so much better. When you bring in a young guy to play, you wonder if they can handle the pressure. That's why I try to test them in practice, because if they can't handle the stress that I put them under then they surely won't be able to handle 60,000 fans on Saturdays. Fortunately for us I haven't been able to faze Wes, so I haven't been worried."