LSU vs. Florida: Jordan Jefferson Set To Start Against the Gators

On Saturday, Oct. 9, the (5-0) LSU Tigers travel to Gainesville for their annual meeting against the (4-1) Florida Gators, in a match-up that often determines each of the respective teams fates.

With that being said, one has to wonder what exactly does LSU Head Coach Les Miles have to see from his atrocious quarterback play before truly making a change, as Miles announced that QB Jordan Jefferson will, again, get the start for the Tigers.

Make no mistake, Jefferson is an excellent young man with an immense amount of talent, yet he has truly been able to transfer that talent to field this season.  Jefferson in fact has only surpassed 100 yards passing in one game this season, and aside from the opening series against Tennessee, in which he burst through the Tennessee defense for an 83 yard score on the first play of the opening offensive series, has been unremarkable at best.

In fact, during the "dumbfounding" Tennessee game, Miles employed a two-quarterback system, as backup QB Jarrett Lee entered the game at various times.  With Lee in the game, the Tigers were able to finally muster a passing attack as Lee completed 16-23 passes for 185 yards, including crucial completions on third and long, and fourth and long during the Tigers game-winning final drive.

It would be foolish to suspect that Lee would not continue to see increased reps against the Gators, but one has to wonder what exactly does Lee have to do to erase some of the doubt still shed from his disastrous 2008 redshirt freshman season, in which he was intercepted 16 times.

The common logic in Baton Rouge has been that Miles trusts Jefferson more due to his lack of mistakes and superior mobility.  While Jefferson is a very capable running threat, what exactly does one consider mistakes?

Jefferson often locks on to receivers, suffers from poor accuracy at times, and has also tossed a six interceptions through five games in the 2010 season.  As for Lee, the only true mistake made so far, has been one interception tossed against Tennessee.  The truth of the interception could have been Lee's fault or could have been the fault of play-calling, as you do not throw a fade rout into the endzone to a 5'11" running back who is matched up against a cornerback.

Needless to say, Miles appears to be drawing a line in the sand with his selection, as he has come under increased criticism for the issues that transpired throughout the Tennessee game, especially the final 30 seconds.  

It would not surprised anyone if Miles reverts back to form and completely sticks with Jefferson, choosing to rely on the Tiger's top ranked defense, and SEC leading running back Stevan Ridley throughout the season.  

No matter what, no one can deny that each week of the college football season provides another reason to explain Miles' unofficial title as the "Mad Hatter."