LSU Football: Grading the Tigers' Game vs. West Virginia

LSU made its case for being the top ranked team in the country with a 47-21 win over West Virginia on Saturday night in Morgantown.

The Tigers were rewarded when the polls came out Sunday with the updated No. 1 ranking in the country.

Many expected LSU's matchup with West Virginia to be close, but it was anything but. The Tigers dominated this contest from start to finish and looked almost flawless in every aspect of the game.

Let's take some time to break down this game and hand out some grades from LSU's big win.

Quarterback

If you still weren't convinced that Jarrett Lee was the right man for this job heading into the West Virgina game, well you better be now.

Lee was great again on Saturday night and did everything that was asked of him in managing the game and leading the Tigers to this big win.

The Tigers' senior quarterback was 16-of-28 for 180 yards and three touchdowns in the win. Most importantly, he did not turn the ball over, despite playing in a hostile environment and dealing with some loud crowd noise.

Lee has answered any questions that anyone had about him coming into the season and should continue to only get better going forward.

Grade: A

Running Backs

LSU is known for winning games with defense and for establishing the run on the offensive end. That was much the same story on Saturday.

The two-headed monster of Spencer Ware and Michael Ford combined for 174 yards on the ground in the victory.

Ware carried the ball 23 times for 92 yards, while Ford rushed 12 times for 82 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Both broke runs over 15 yards, both of which came at crucial points in the game.

We can say that 200 combined yards would have been nice, but no complaints about 174 and two touchdowns, that's for certain.

Grade: B+

Receivers

One of the biggest stories coming into this game was that LSU was going to get big-play wideout Russell Shepard back in the lineup for this game after coming off a three-game suspension.

Shepard had a nice 16-yard reception in the game, but it was the usual suspects that came up big for LSU in this one.

Junior wideout Rueben Randle was the best receiver of the night for the Tigers, hauling in six catches for 53 yards and a touchdown. In addition to Randle, freshman Odell Beckham also had a nice game, including the biggest touchdown catch of the game for LSU, which came midway through the second quarter and have the Tigers a 20-7 lead.

This group continues to look good, but we would like to see the ball spread out a little more. Randle had six of the teams 16 receptions.

Grade: B-

O-Line

This offensive line is one of the most underrated units in the country.

The Tigers' held West Virgina All-American defensive end Bruce Irvin in check throughout the majority of the game, providing amble time for Jarrett Lee to step up in the pocket and make big throws.

The offensive line also paved the way for a solid running game as the Tigers out-rushed the Mountaineers 186-70 in this contest.

This unit is young, but man are they good.

Grade: A-

D-Line

There isn't a better defensive line in all of football right now than the LSU Tigers.

The Tigers rattled Geno Smith throughout this game, and while he did pass for over 400 yards, he was pressured all night and was forced into throwing two interceptions at crucial times in the game.

In addition to the interceptions, LSU's defense also forced two fumbles, both of which were lost.

It would be awfully tough to find another line that could dominate West Virgina like LSU did in this one.

Grade: A

Linebackers

West Virginia had been using a running back by committee strategy heading into Saturday nights game against LSU, but it really didn't matter who the Mountaineers handed the ball off in this game, because it just didn't work.

LSU's linebackers were solid yet again, stopping the run and making sure that Geno Smith did not get loose for any big runs in this game.

This unit is still third fiddle compared to the d-line and secondary, but that doesn't mean they aren't an elite unit.

Grade: B

Secondary

This is a difficult grade to hand out because the secondary looked so dominant at times during this game, but Geno Smith's 463 passing yards would make you think otherwise.

At times, this group did let up a number of big plays, including several huge run-after-the-catch plays to Tavon Austin. But that can't take away from the two interceptions they had.

Mo Claiborne and Tyrann Mathieu were both brilliant yet again in this one, even though Mathieu does have that weird looking dyed blonde hair.

There isn't a better secondary in the country...That's right, you heard that Alabama fans.

Grade: B+

Special Teams

Many could say that the balanced offensive attack and Jarrett Lee's ability to manage the game won this one for LSU.

Others could say that it was LSU's defense and creating those four turnovers that won the game for LSU.

But the truth is that the dominant special teams play from LSU is what won the Tigers' this football game on the road.

Freshman punter Brad Wing had six punts land inside West Virginia's 15-yard line. He averaged 49 yards on those six punts, which is beyond impressive for anyone—especially a freshman.

Mo Claiborne returned four kicks for a total of 154 yards, including an electric 99-yard kick return late in the third quarter, which broke the game open for the Tigers.

As good as West Virginia's special teams have been heading into this game, LSU's was even better in this one.

Grade: A+

Coaching

Les Miles is one bold coach.

That statement became more than obvious on a third-and-one call midway through the second quarter tonight. Miles called in his power-blocking package, making the assumption that the Tigers were all but certain to run the ball. But Miles went against conventional wisdom and shocked everyone when he called for a pass.

Jarrett Lee bombed a 52-yard touchdown strike to freshman Odell Beckham, which no one saw coming.

Miles had a perfectly balanced plan on the offensive side of the ball, and the defense was special as always.

Grade: A

Intangibles

We all heard it from the media and the West Virginia fans.

"Morgantown is one of the most difficult places in the country to play for a visiting team."

LSU clearly just shook that off and laughed at that statement because the home crowd didn't stand a chance at stopping this LSU team.

The Tigers' marched right into Morgantown, scored the first 13 points of the game and held West Virgina's offense scoreless in the first quarter as the route was on.

LSU has now beaten three ranked teams this season, and all of them come on the road. That's the sign of a great football team, and that's exactly what LSU is-- a great football team.

Grade: A