First Thoughts: Florida 14, LSU 6

There's not a lot of good things to say about this game. LSU didn't just lose, they got absolutely dominated in the second half by a good not great Florida squad. All of the questions raised by the first month of games have been answered. No one said we'd like the answer.

There's going to be a lot of blame for Zach Mettenberger, and he certainly didn't play a good game. He made poor decisions, held on to the ball too long, and generally failed to execute. But it's hard to execute when you spend most of the game running for your life.

LSU's offensive line is terrible right now. Teams can absorb losses here and there, but the sheer weight of personnel losses dragged down this team, but nowhere else as obviously than on the offensive line. Chris Faulk is a first round talent, and his absence is painfully apparent.

Everything starts from the line, and LSU can't block. Mettenberger doesn't have time in the pocket, which leads to sacks or bad decisions. It also means the running backs can't get any momentum during their runs, getting hit in the backfield before they can get a head of steam. LSU's failures on the line just sank everything the offense wanted to do.

Eventually, the failures of the offense would drag down an excellent defense as well. The defense spent about two thirds of the game on the field, and they just gave out in the second half. Florida took control of the game by running the ball over and over and over and over. There was nothing cute about it, it was just breaking the will of a unit that was ready to break.

Now, singling out the offensive line lets the receivers off the hook, who also put forth the effort we've come to expect this year: a bad one. Odell Beckham's fumble summed up the game perfectly. The offense finally makes a big play and then gives the ball right back to Florida. A good play is turned into a negative play.

This was a game so terrible LSU even lost the special teams battle. Mettenberger's early struggle could largely be attributed to field position. LSU started inside their own 10 yard line three times in the first half. It's hard to open up the offense when you spend most of the time trying to just get out of the shadow of your own goalposts.

We got beat pretty much way you can get beat.

You may vent now.