CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2003 LSU

13–⁠1 (7–⁠1 Southeastern Conference), coached by Nick Saban, finished No. 2 in the AP poll.

Schedule and results

LSU in 2003, game by game: won vs. UL Monroe 49–7; won at Arizona 59–13; won vs. Western Illinois 35–7; won vs. No. 7 Georgia 17–10; won at Mississippi State 41–6; lost vs. Florida 7–19; won at South Carolina 33–7; won vs. No. 17 Auburn 31–7; won vs. Louisiana Tech 49–10; won at Alabama 27–3; won at No. 15 Ole Miss 17–14; won vs. Arkansas 55–24; won vs. No. 5 Georgia 34–13; won vs. No. 1 Oklahoma 21–14+46−12Won 49–7 vs. UL Monroe+42UL MonroeWon 59–13 at Arizona+46ArizonaWon 35–7 vs. Western Illinois+28Western IllinoisWon 17–10 vs. No. 7 Georgia+7No. 7 GeorgiaWon 41–6 at Mississippi State+35Mississippi Sta…Lost 7–19 vs. Florida-12FloridaWon 33–7 at South Carolina+26South CarolinaWon 31–7 vs. No. 17 Auburn+24No. 17 AuburnWon 49–10 vs. Louisiana Tech+39Louisiana TechWon 27–3 at Alabama+24AlabamaWon 17–14 at No. 15 Ole Miss+3No. 15 Ole MissWon 55–24 vs. Arkansas+31ArkansasWon 34–13 vs. No. 5 Georgia+21No. 5 GeorgiaWon 21–14 vs. No. 1 Oklahoma+7No. 1 Oklahoma
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 30vsUL MonroeW 49–⁠784%
Sep 6atArizonaW 59–⁠1359%
Sep 13vsWestern IllinoisW 35–⁠785%
Sep 20vs7GeorgiaW 17–⁠1045%
Sep 27atMississippi StateW 41–⁠677%
Oct 11vsFloridaL 7–⁠1969%
Oct 18atSouth CarolinaW 33–⁠754%
Oct 25vs17AuburnW 31–⁠761%
Nov 1vsLouisiana TechW 49–⁠1084%
Nov 15atAlabamaW 27–⁠358%
Nov 22at15Ole MissW 17–⁠1457%
Nov 28vsArkansasW 55–⁠2472%
Dec 6vs5GeorgiaSEC Championship GameW 34–⁠1347%
Jan 4Bowls & playoffvs1OklahomaSugar BowlW 21–⁠1446%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Oklahoma 21–⁠14 in the Sugar Bowl; No. 2 in the final AP poll; Southeastern Conference champions.

In program history: The 3rd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 123 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 1: 14
  2. Wk 3: 13
  3. Wk 4: 12
  4. Wk 5: 11
  5. Wk 6: 7
  6. Wk 7: 6
  7. Wk 8: 6
  8. Wk 9: 10
  9. Wk 10: 9
  10. Wk 11: 7
  11. Wk 12: 4
  12. Wk 13: 3
  13. Wk 14: 3
  14. Wk 15: 3
  15. Wk 16: 3
  16. Final: 2

Players on this team

Before 2004 our records hold honors and the draft; these are the players whose college years here, from their Wikipedia articles or their honors, include 2003.

National championsa title the school claims

Southeastern Conference champions7–⁠1 in the conference, won the SEC Championship Game

Led the nationSkyler Green: punt return average (18.5)

Consensus All-AmericanChad Lavalais, DT

Eddie Robinson Coach of the YearNick Saban, coach; also the Bear Bryant Award

Record
13–⁠1
Conference
7–⁠1 shared first in Southeastern Conference
AP final
No. 2 peak No. 2
Points
475–⁠154
Coach
Nick Saban
Elo
1806 +227 this season
SP+ rating
30.9 No. 1 of 117; offense No. 13, defense No. 1
SRS
22.6 No. 2 of 117 in Division I-A
Recruiting class
No. 3
Offensive coordinator
Jimbo Fisher
Defensive coordinator
Will Muschamp
Offense
Pro-style
Defense
4–⁠3

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense-0.2own 36— allowed
Defense0.0own 27— caused

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.

Top recruits in the 2003 class

JaMarcus Russell PRO★★★★No. 38
Amp Hill WR★★★★No. 46
Jerry Sevin OC★★★★No. 109
LaRon Landry S★★★★No. 116
Nick Child CB★★★★No. 126
Sean Merrill SDE★★★★No. 127

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2003 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks14.00.982
Receivers14.00.978
Offensive line14.00.935
Defensive line14.00.908
Defensive backs33.70.880
Whole class73.90.921

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2004

The 2004 draft
Rd 1Michael Clayton WRTampa Bay Buccaneers
Rd 2Devery Henderson WRNew Orleans Saints
Rd 2Marquise Hill DENew England Patriots
Rd 3Stephen Peterman OGDallas Cowboys
Rd 5Chad Lavalais DTAtlanta Falcons
Rd 7Donald Jones PSeattle Seahawks
Rd 7Matt Mauck QBDenver Broncos

All-SEC

7 first team, 3 second team

First team

Second team

From Wikipedia’s 2003 all-conference team article, with the selectors that named each player (AP-1: the Associated Press’s first team).

2003 Southeastern Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
LSU7–⁠113–⁠12
Ole Miss7–⁠110–⁠313
Georgia6–⁠211–⁠37
Tennessee6–⁠210–⁠315
Florida6–⁠28–⁠524
Auburn5–⁠38–⁠5
Arkansas4–⁠49–⁠4
South Carolina2–⁠65–⁠7
Alabama2–⁠64–⁠9
Kentucky1–⁠74–⁠8
Mississippi State1–⁠72–⁠10
Vanderbilt1–⁠72–⁠10

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.