Maybe Les Miles should be glad it happened sooner than later.

Today, the Baton Rouge Police Department issued arrest warrants for senior QB Jordan Jefferson and sophomore LB Joshua Johns for second degree battery—a felony charge in Louisiana.

In what looks like the beginning of a long and ugly court case for Jefferson and Johns, Coach Les Miles may be getting a break in the timing of all of it, knowing that he won't be able to count on certain players as the season opens next weekend with PAC 10 powerhouse Oregon.

As the story continues to dominate local and regional media, the Tigers continue to prep for a game in which they will face major personnel issues. Yesterday, the team announced that star receiver Russell Shepard would miss several games due to an NCAA suspension for illegal protocol (or talking to another player being interviewed by the NCAA after being told not to).

What once was a season of great promise is now a season of mystery for the Tigers...the question is, can they still turn in a great performance to achieve their goals?

The answer is a solid maybe.

Truth be told, senior Jarrett Lee is a fine QB who has matured in the system. He can certainly manage the team and complete high percentage passes. Zach Mettenberger is a true talent who still needs time to develop but has the skill to pull off a few amazing throws when needed.

Shepard is out for a while, but with a solid running game and some good play calling, LSU can use a ball-control offense to drain the clock while the aggressive defense does its job.

There is simply too much talent to count the Tigers out of anything...so the question of their success will likely come down to the team's mental capacity to move past the drama of the "Summer of 2011" to achieve BCS success in 2012.