Ole Miss @ LSU preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 21, 2017 ) Louisiana State 40, Mississippi 24

LSU is bringing College Football Playoff aspirations into every game it plays, and even wins are proving to be unsatisfying for a team that wants to be the best. The sixth-ranked Tigers will try to find their highest gear for 60 minutes when they return to SEC play by hosting Ole Miss on Saturday night.

LSU already has two wins over top-10 opponents on its resume but didn't feel like it played its best during a 38-21 win over Louisiana Tech last week, especially in the defensive backfield. "(Defensive backs) coach (Corey) Raymond, he expects us to play at a high level every game, no matter the opponent," cornerback Greedy Williams told the team's website. "We didn’t excel to that standard (against Louisiana Tech). We have to be better than last week, move on, and prove ourselves this week." That Tigers defensive backfield will need to right itself quickly against the Rebels, who are coming off a 38-17 victory over Kent State in which quarterback Jordan Ta'amu threw for 442 yards. That performance marked a big bounce-back for Ole Miss, which was trounced 62-7 at home against top-ranked Alabama in its previous contest.

TV: 9 p.m. ET, ESPN. LINE: LSU -12

ABOUT OLE MISS (3-1, 0-1 SEC): While Ta'amu's performance got the offense clicking last week, it was the big improvement from the defense that gives the team some encouragement moving forward. "The confidence we found was in each other," defensive end Markel Winters told reporters. "Just to see everyone knew their job and that they could do it. Play for each other. That was a big thing. Playing with a purpose is important. Our theme this week was that you have your what and your why. You have your job and you know what you are supposed to do, but there is a reason why you are doing that job." The Rebels held Kent State off the scoreboard in the fourth quarter last week, and the 17 points allowed marked a season low.

ABOUT LSU (4-0, 1-0): The Tigers were able to overcome the problems in the secondary last week thanks to the running game on offense, which churned out 218 yards and totaled five touchdowns. Sophomore Clyde Edwards-Helaire broke out with career bests of 136 yards and 20 carries while Nick Brossette continued to be a weapon on the goal line with TD runs of one, one and two yards. Quarterback Joe Burrow is completing 49.1 percent of his passes but has yet to turn the ball over and enjoyed his best single-game completion percentage of the season when he connected on 16-of-28 passes against Louisiana Tech.

EXTRA POINTS

1. LSU OG Garrett Brumfield (knee) is not expected to play this week.

2. The Rebels' defense has forced at least two turnovers in each of the last three games.

3. The Tigers have captured the last two meetings and six of the last eight in the series.

PREDICTION: LSU 35, Ole Miss 14