...only because the SEC is not as dominating as in years past. UF is an elite team, UGA and Bama are really good, and LSU is above average.  We will likely have a winning SEC record this year, playing all three teams better than us, which makes us above average.  Let's face is though, our defense is bad.   Really bad.   Worst in the SEC bad.  Our defense has managed to give up the following point totals:

21 Auburn*

24 MS St.*

51 UF*

17 SC

52 UGA*

Teams that are starred (*) are teams that we allowed to score their SEC season high point total through that point in the season.  Auburn has since topped that mark by one point against lowly Arkansas (although Arkansas gave them a "free" safety at the end of the game rather than punting from their endzone).  Freaking MS St. will probably not score 24 pts the rest of the year combined.  Florida, having had a renewed level of confidence, has since beaten their point total against UK, and UGA (who couldn't hang 52 on 1AA Georgia Southern) won't dump more than 52 on a single foe for the rest of the year, much less in SEC competition.

Let's face it, LSU's defense is the government bailout of college football.   When other teams are stuggling to score points, they schedule LSU.  Yes, that's right, LSU's defense is what is known in the male college crowd as a slump buster.  We're turning into the once popular girl you take home from the bar just to prove you've still got it.   We were the hot girl in highschool, so teams think they've really accomplished something by beating the ever living crap out of us, but now we're the girl that everyone has a shot at.  Slump Busters try to justify their behavior to their friends by saying things like "He's really nice", "I was really wasted that night" or "They scored 17 of their points off of turnovers".  But deep down you know and I know we're a slump buster.  How do I know we're a slump buster?  Because Gator Fans (see the comments section) are already starting to think that their little conquest isn't quite so meaningful anymore.

Sure our offense is putting our defense in tough situations at times, but they are also scoring a lot more points than anyone thought they would.  Our defense just can't get it together.  When we play soft, teams pick us apart underneath.  When we blitz, we blitz too many, don't get to the QB in time, and give up the big play.  We can't get rid of the players (and frankly with consistent top 10 recruiting classes why would you want to?) so the DC's have got to go.  I'm not at all mad that we lost to UF and UGA, I'm mad that we've given up a combined 103 points in those games. Please Les.  I'm tired of getting drilled, figuratively and literally.  I'm tired of being the slump buster.