Can LSU finally solve Florida?

BATON ROUGE, La. It&#39;s a dismal record. <br> <br> Florida has beaten LSU five straight times, 13 of the last 14. The last time the Tigers stopped the Gators was in 1997, and that was the first time in a decade. <br> <br> ``It&#39;s been bad,&#39;&#39; said LSU safety Norman LeJeune. <br> <br> No. 18 LSU hasn&#39;t won at No. 16 Florida since 1986, having lost seven straight in Gainesville. And the Tigers have lost big. <br> <br> Florida beat LSU 41-9 in Gainesville in 2000 and 44-15 in Tiger Stadium last year. <br> <br> ``Since I&#39;ve been here they&#39;ve outscored us like 90-20,&#39;&#39; cornerback Randall Gay said. ``It hasn&#39;t been too good.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> The Tigers are 11-6 in the Southeastern Conference under coach Nick Saban. Florida is the only team among the eight conference opponents Saban has faced that he has yet to beat. <br> <br> ``I don&#39;t think we&#39;ve competed very well against Florida since I&#39;ve been here, which I can&#39;t say about any other team,&#39;&#39; Saban said. <br> <br> This year things may be different. For one thing, Steve Spurrier has left and taken his ``Fun & Gun&#39;&#39; offense with him. For another, Saban&#39;s defense is playing as well as it has since his arrival. <br> <br> LSU (4-1, 1-0) has the best overall and pass defenses in the nation. The Tigers are also ranked third in the nation in scoring defense, yielding 56 points overall and just 30 in their last four games. <br> <br> The problem, Saban points out, is that those stats have been accumulated against the likes of Louisiana-Lafayette and The Citadel. Florida (4-2,2-1) will be a different matter. <br> <br> ``Look, after this game we&#39;ll know where we are as a defensive unit,&#39;&#39; said LSU linebacker Bradie James. ``We&#39;re going to be tested this week. We&#39;re going against Florida in the Swamp and we&#39;ll know a lot more about our defense after the game.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> The Tigers have allowed 250 or less yards per game, mainly by forcing turnovers and limiting big plays. LSU has allowed only four plays of 20 or more yards and two of 30 or more. <br> <br> ``I think we have good leadership, we have a nice blend of experience and young guys and the young guys have really made a tremendous amount of improvement over the last 3-4 games,&#39;&#39; Saban said. ``Most of the older guys are playing well and are playing the way you would like your experienced players to play. They are not making many mistakes, they are supporting the younger guys, they are playing hard and setting a good example for them.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> LSU will need all of that against Florida, which is second in the SEC in total offense with 431.4 yards per game. <br> <br> Florida quarterback Rex Grossman, who had a school record 464 yards and five touchdowns against the Tigers last year, has passed for 1,634 yards and 10 touchdowns this season. <br> <br> ``It&#39;s a step-by-step thing,&#39;&#39; LeJeune said. ``We&#39;re going over everything Florida does. We know we have to be on our toes and be ready for a very physical game.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Everyone on the team is aware of LSU&#39;s gloomy record against the Gators, LeJeune said. They&#39;re aware of it, but not concentrating on it. <br> <br> ``You can be scared or you can go out and play your game,&#39;&#39; LeJeune said. ``If you&#39;re scared you can&#39;t get on the bus with us. We&#39;re going to be ready for them this year.&#39;&#39;