LSU scouting report

Who: Florida 4-2 (2-2 SEC) vs. LSU 3-3 (1-2 SEC)

When: 12 p.m. Saturday

Where: Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, La.

TV: ESPN Radio: 103.7-FM, AM-850

Last Week: The Tigers ventured to Commonwealth Stadium and were run over by Kentucky 42-21, and it wasn’t that close. The Wildcats led 35-7 in the fourth quarter as the temperature on Ed Orgeron’s coaching seat became hot enough to boil shrimp on. The Tigers began the season as a darkhorse pick to win the SEC West, or at least make it to the Las Vegas Bowl. Now they’ve gone 8-8 since their 2019 national championship, and Orgeron seems unable to stop the slide.

Abolverdi's Answers: Gators improve red-zone efficiency, cut down on penalties vs. Vandy

Best Offensive Player: Running back Tyrion Davis-Price has emerged as bright spot in a running attack that has been lame. The Tigers entered the Kentucky game averaging only 2.58 yards per rushing attempt and 70.8 yards overall. Davis-Price had 148 yards against the Wildcats. Kayshon Boutte is an elite receiver, but he was carted off the field with an ankle injury and is out for the rest of the season, Orgeron said Monday.

Making the grade:College football: Whitley grades the Gators

Best Defensive Player: All-World cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. is out indefinitely after having a procedure on his left foot, and LSU hasn’t offered any clue when he’ll return. Senior linebacker Damone Clark is having a monster year, though it hasn’t done much to stop the overall defensive bleeding. Kentucky manhandled the Tigers, gaining 318 yards on the ground. Now come the run-happy Gators.

More:Whitley: Gators it half-right

Fun Fact: Florida prides itself on being the home and original testing ground for Gatorade, but LSU actually had the first sports drink. Athletic trainer Martin Broussard developed “Bengal Punch” in 1958, seven years before Dr. Robert Cade’s brainchild beverage started flowing in Gainesville. Bengal Punch eventually became a flavor of Quickick, a Baton Rouge beverage company.

Series: Florida leads 33-31-3. The teams have played annually since 1971, LSU was designated UF’s permanent cross-division rival in 1992. The Tigers have won the last two games, including last year’s 37-34 fog-shrouded thriller in Gainesville that featured the most famous/infamous shoe toss in UF history.

Quote: “We have a lot of confidence. We’ll go to work tomorrow and try to prepare for Florida, like we do every day. That’s not going to change.” – Ed Orgeron.