LSU football's defense struggled in the Tigers' Week 6 loss to Kentucky. The unit allowed a 77-yard run on its first play, and Kentucky scored a touchdown on the second.
As the first half neared a close, the Kentucky offense marched right down the field to score again.
LSU buckled down after halftime and didn't allow a touchdown in the final two quarters, but Kentucky drove the length of the field to kick a game-tying field goal. In overtime, Kentucky got the ball second and scored on LSU's defense again, winning the game on a two-point conversion.
LSU's defense was ranked among the nation's top units entering the Kentucky game, but the loss raised questions. Here are five things that went wrong for LSU's defense in Week 6.
Kentucky remained ahead of the chains
In our LSU vs. Kentucky preview, we wrote that the key to shutting down the Kentucky offense was keeping the Wildcats off schedule. UK QB Kenny Minchey isn't an efficient dropback passer, and Kentucky really struggles in third-and-long. LSU didn't accomplish that goal, and Kentucky stayed on schedule for most of the night.
Kentucky's standard down success rate (non-obvious passing situations) was 48%. That was the worst mark the LSU defense has posted this year. Meanwhile, the success rate on passing downs was just 25%.
Kentucky's first-down success let it operate from manageable second- and third-down situations. The playbook remained open for the Wildcats, keeping LSU off balance, and the Tigers' pass rush struggled.
If LSU had forced Kentucky into more third-and-longs, we probably would have seen the disruptive LSU defense we're used to seeing. LSU's havoc rate was below its season average, and the Tigers didn't force a single turnover.
Kentucky outleveraged LSU in the run game on its scoring drive before the half
Here's a look at the play-by-play from Kentucky's touchdown drive before the half. The Wildcats ripped off a 15-play drive, methodically moving down the field.
| # | Clock | Down | Spot | Play | Yards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6:11 | 1st & 10 | UK 25 | Jason Patterson run middle (Davhon Keys) | +5 |
| 2 | 5:34 | 2nd & 5 | UK 30 | Kenny Minchey pass to Nic Anderson (Ty Benefield) 1ST DOWN | +12 |
| 3 | 5:15 | 1st & 10 | UK 42 | Minchey pass to Anderson (Jhase Thomas) | +7 |
| 4 | 4:53 | 2nd & 3 | UK 49 | Minchey pass to Patterson (TJ Dottery) 1ST DOWN | +7 |
| 5 | 4:08 | 1st & 10 | LSU 44 | Minchey pass to Henry Boyer (PJ Woodland, Benefield) | +4 |
| 6 | 3:31 | 2nd & 6 | LSU 40 | CJ Baxter run middle (Dottery) 1ST DOWN | +6 |
| 7 | 2:50 | 1st & 10 | LSU 34 | Baxter run right, out of bounds (Thomas) | +6 |
| 8 | 2:11 | 2nd & 4 | LSU 28 | Minchey pass incomplete to Kenny Darby; hurried by Jordan Ross | 0 |
| 9 | 2:11 | 3rd & 4 | LSU 28 | Baxter run right (Dottery) 1ST DOWN | +10 |
| 10 | 1:59 | 1st & 10 | LSU 18 | Baxter run middle (Keys) | +5 |
| 11 | 1:14 | 2nd & 5 | LSU 13 | Baxter run right (Princewill Umanmielen) 1ST DOWN | +5 |
| 12 | 0:43 | 1st & Goal | LSU 8 | Baxter run right (Keys) | +1 |
| 13 | 0:38 | 2nd & Goal | LSU 7 | Baxter run middle (Malik Blocton) | +3 |
| 14 | 0:19 | 3rd & Goal | LSU 4 | Minchey run middle (Keys) | +3 |
| 15 | 0:03 | 4th & Goal | LSU 1 | Minchey 1-yard TD run; Adam Zouagui PAT good TD | +1 |
Kentucky had LSU's number in the run game on this drive. CJ Baxter earned a first down with a 6-yard run up the middle on play six. On play nine, LSU had Kentucky in third and four, but CJ Baxter bounced it outside, and LSU cornerback PJ Woodland missed a tackle. Play callers like it when they force a cornerback to tackle in that situation.
Two plays later, Kentucky bounced it outside for another first down. This time, Princewill Umanmielen couldn't set the edge. The Woodland missed tackle and Umanmielen getting blocked were both examples of LSU failing to contain.
LSU didn't make Kentucky earn its yards on this drive, and UK took the lead back with a touchdown before the half.
Kentucky found passing lanes on final drive of regulation
Kentucky QB Kenny Minchey saw the field well on UK's final drive of regulation. The Wildcats drove the field to set up the overtime field goal.
On second and 10 with 1:29 left, LSU dropped eight defenders into coverage and rushed only three. Minchey still connected with a wide receiver for a first down, finding a soft spot in LSU's zone coverage. DJ Pickett was playing off the receiver, and linebacker TJ Dottery didn't get in the passing lane quickly enough.
Later in the drive, LSU was in cover three. The corners were playing loose as LSU wanted to prevent the big play. That allowed the Kentucky WR to gain leverage on a deep-breaking in route. Perhaps the bigger issue on this play was LSU's lack of pass rush. Minchey had enough time to work across the field to his final read.
Two plays later, LSU was back in cover three. Minchey found his receiver in the seam. LSU wasn't playing match coverage, so defenders weren't locking onto receivers, which let the seam open up. Traditional zone is less aggressive than match coverage, but that conservative approach didn't work here.
Kentucky shifts and motions caused problems for LSU
Kentucky threw the kitchen sink at LSU. Head coach Will Stein and offensive coordinator. On multiple occasions, Kentucky used pre-snap movement to create a numbers advantage against the LSU defense. Running the ball is essentially a numbers game—if the offense has more blockers than the defense has defenders, the offense will find success on the ground.
Kentucky would shift, create an advantageous look, then run a gap scheme with pullers to add to its numbers advantage.
At times, LSU didn't know how to get lined up. This is probably an area where LSU missed Whit Weeks, who typically wears the green dot and serves as LSU's leader on the field.
This article originally appeared on LSU Wire: Four things doomed LSU football's defense vs Kentucky