re: To me, the most intriguing West battle is Auburn and LSU.

Okay I'm going to try to be less hyperbolic than most positive LSU fans.

Last year was a clusterfick of epic proportions. Danny Etling was still pretty green. He was injured and I expect him to be more mobile this season, but I also don't buy the narrative that he was in some numbing pain all season and played through it. His mobility was probably limited and he did have to compensate for that, but I don't expect him to become some athletic freak that can make all the throws.

He will be better than last year. He's in an offense that gets the ball out of his hands faster. It's less predictable than any offense we've had in recent memory. His decision-making will be sharper. The moment will no longer be too big for him. He will be fine.

Jarrett Stidham looked impressive when he played, but he also played against mostly scrubby opponents. Had a few true tests and he performed pretty well in those, but I'm not ready to annoint him, even thouguh Auburn's WR core is impressive. You won't run on us, so if our secondary is worth a shite you're in for a long day.

Our defense was definitely not as sharp as it was nearing the end of the season. Even with what we lost to the draft, I think we are a deeper, fully installed defense.

I think this game will be great. It's going to be a slugfest. But I think the home crowd (which will be hungry as hell. This is easily our best home game this year) will get up for this one. Especially if Auburn is still highly ranked at that point. Hopefully one to remember, with a W for the home team.