Ole Miss Football Game Notes

Nov. 16, 2003

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DATE: Saturday, November 22, 2003

TIME: 2:30 p.m.

SITE: Vaught-Hemingway Stadium/Hollingsworth Field (60,580); Oxford, Miss.

TV: CBS (Verne Lundquist, play-by-play; Todd Blackledge, color analyst; Jill Arrington, sideline reporter).

RADIO: Ole Miss Radio Network (David Kellum, play-by-play; Harry Harrison, color analyst; Stan Sandroni, sideline reporter; Gary Darby, pregame host). Live audio will also be available on the official Ole Miss athletic website, www.OleMissSports.com.

POLLS: LSU is ranked No. 3 in both this week's Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today Coaches Top 25 polls. Ole Miss is No. 15 in both polls, up two spots from No. 17 in The AP Top 25 and up four places from No. 19 in the Coaches poll.

SERIES INFO: Saturday's meeting will be the 92nd all-time between the Ole Miss Rebels and LSU Tigers dating back to 1894 ... LSU is Ole Miss' second-most played opponent besides Mississippi State, who the Rebels will play for the 100th time on Thanksgiving Night in Oxford ... LSU holds a 50-37-4 advantage in the series, however, the Rebels have won four of the last six meetings since 1997 ... LSU won last year's contest 14-13 at Tiger Stadium to snap a three-game Ole Miss winning streak at "Death Valley" ... Saturday's game will be the 11th meeting between the two schools in Oxford and the first since a 20-9 Tiger win in 2000 ... LSU holds a 5-4-1 advantage in games played in Oxford.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR: The SEC's No. 1 scoring offense and No. 1 scoring defense will meet Saturday. Ole Miss leads the SEC in scoring offense, averaging 36.6 points per game, while LSU is first in the SEC and No. 1 nationally in scoring defense, yielding only 8.9 points per game ... LSU is the highest-ranked opponent to visit Oxford since No. 1 Florida in 1994 ... Ole Miss can clinch its first-ever SEC Western Division championship with a win, while LSU can win the West with a win over the Rebels, and then a win over Arkansas or an Ole Miss loss to Mississippi State the following week.

OLE MISS HEAD COACH David Cutcliffe: David Cutcliffe (Alabama, 1976) is in his fifth season as the Rebels' head coach. He is 38-21 (.644 winning pct.) at Ole Miss and is the only coach in school history to lead the Rebels to at least seven wins in each of his first five seasons. Ole Miss is Cutcliffe's first career head coaching position. Cutcliffe is 2-2 versus LSU and 1-2 against Tiger head coach Nick Saban.

LSU HEAD COACH NICK SABAN: Nick Saban is in his fourth year as the head coach of the LSU Tigers. He is 35-13 (.729 winning pct.) with the Tigers and is 78-39-1 (.665 winning pct.) overall in his 10th year as a collegiate head coach. Saban has also served head coaching stints at Toledo (1990) and Michigan State (1995-1999). He guided the Rockets to a 9-2 mark in his only year at the school, and posted a five-year mark of 34-24-1 with the Spartans from 1995-1999. He has taken his teams to a total of six bowl appearances, including the 2000 Peach, 2002 Sugar and 2003 Cotton Bowls with LSU. Saban is 2-1 against Ole Miss and Rebel head coach David Cutcliffe.

LSU SCOUTING REPORT: LSU will enter Saturday's game having outscored the opposition 348-89. The Tigers rank first nationally in scoring defense, allowing an average of 8.9 points per game, and are second in the SEC and fourth in the nation in total defense, allowing an average of 259.7 yards per game. Offensively, LSU is second in the SEC, behind Ole Miss, in scoring offense with an average of 34.8 points per game. The Tigers also average 432.4 yards per contest. Junior QB Matt Mauck leads the SEC with a 154.1 pass efficiency rating, having connected on 171-of-266 passes for 2,175 yards with 21 TDs and eight interceptions. His favorite target has been junior WR Michael Clayton, who has caught 57 passes for 835 yards and seven TDs. Senior Devery Henderson has caught 43 passes for 694 yards and nine TDs, and sophomore Skyler Green has 37 receptions for 437 yards and four scores. The Tigers are averaging 174.6 yards rushing per game and have four backs with 300 yards rushing. Freshman Justin Vincent has gained a team-high 466 yards on 80 carries with five TDs and sophomore Joseph Addai has added 400 yards on 89 attempts with two scores.

2003 LSU SCHEDULE/RESULTS
(9-1 OVERALL, 5-1 SEC)

AUG. 30	LOUISIANA-MONROE	W, 49-7
Sept. 6	at Arizona	W, 59-13
SEPT. 13	WESTERN ILLINOIS	W, 35-7
SEPT. 20	(#7) GEORGIA*	W, 17-10
Sept. 27	at Mississippi State*	W, 41-6
OCT. 11	FLORIDA*	L, 7-19
Oct. 18	at South Carolina	W, 33-7
OCT. 25	AUBURN*	W, 31-7
NOV. 1	LOUISIANA TECH	W, 49-10
Nov. 15	at Alabama*	W, 27-3
*Nov. 22*	(#15) at Ole Miss*	*2:30 p.m.*
NOV. 28	ARKANSAS*	1:30 P.M.

* - SEC game.
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