Miami Hurricanes defense left off two top 10 lists nationally LSU is on

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LSU returns only ten starters on defense and their numbers were not as good as Miami’s last season. The Tigers finished 11th nationally in sacks, 64th in tackles for loss and 70th in turnovers. LSU also only had two players ranked in Sports Illustrated’s top 100 compared to Miami’s three.

Tigers cornerback Greedy Williams who is expected to be a high pick in the 2019 NFL Draft was ranked the 11th best player in the country. Linebacker Derrick White is 75th.

Johnson was ranked the eighth best player in the country by SI. Quarterman is 14th and Hurricanes defensive end Joe Jackson 67th. It makes no sense that LSU’s defense would be ahead of the Hurricanes on any list, let alone two. This should serve as bulletin board material for Miami Defensive Coordinator Manny Diaz.

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The 247 list was written by Brad Crawford. The first sentence of his summary of the LSU defense before the ellipses should be taken to heart. Other than getting after the quarterback last season, LSU’s defense was not one of the best in the country.

In this case, the old ESPN show “Numbers never lie” is correct. Crawford ranks the LSU defense as the ninth best in the nation.

"“No one talked about LSU’s defense as one of the nation’s best last season … but it was. The Tigers ranked inside the Top 15 in total defense and scoring defense and bring back the bulk of their starters behind the defensive line. Rashard Lawrence is the only returning starter along LSU’s three-man front, but those close to the program are confident Texas Tech transfer Breiden Fehoko and JUCO standout Travez Moore can create a solid 1-2 punch at end. Linebacker K’Lavon Chaisson is a star in the making alongside LSU’s leading tackler from a season ago, Devin White.”"

Miami was 28th last season in scoring defense and 38th in total defense. If we take out Miami’s postseason games against Clemson and Wisconsin the Hurricanes defense would have ranked 11th nationally in points allowed. LSU would have been 13th if we were measuring scoring defense on regular season games alone.

It’s hard to figure how the Tigers without six starters from last season’s defense are still ranked that high. Clearly, Williams is a great talent. White being ranked the 75th best player in the country is impressive. He’s not the transcendent player that Quarterman is at linebacker.

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