2003 defense among scariest this century

The success LSU has seen since the turn of the century has been unprecedented for the program.

In that two-decade (and change) span, it has won three national championships — second nationally only to Alabama and Nick Saban, the coach responsible for kickstarting that run in Baton Rouge.

Saban took the Tigers to the mountaintop for the first time since 1958 in the 2003 season, and he did so with an absolutely domineering defense that produced future NFL standouts such as Marcus Spears and LaRon Landry. That group led the nation in both points allowed and yards allowed per game.

Pro Football Network recently ran a piece breaking down the scariest defenses college football has seen since 2000, and the Tigers’ 2003 unit was one of the few to crack the list.

Record: 13-1 | Yards Allowed/Game: 255.4 (1st) | Points Allowed/Game: 11 (1st) | Drafted Players: 8 | Shutouts: 0 | Award Winners: None

Were it not for that 2011 Alabama squad, LSU’s defense would’ve been the peak of the mountain that year. Tyrann Mathieu, Mo Claiborne, and Eric Reid made throwing the ball a chore. Regardless, the 2003 version of the Tigers (yet another Nick Saban-led team) rivaled that success. They may not have held a team to zero points, but they allowed over 14 just once.

With five soon-to-be drafted starters, the Tigers posted a completion percentage against of 44.7 (second), an average yards per play of 4 (first), and forfeited just 13.6 first downs per contest (tied first).

LSU plowed to a 12-1 regular-season record, joining Oklahoma and USC as the only one-loss programs that year. The coaches and AP polls had USC and LSU as the top-ranked teams, but the BCS system placed the Tigers and Oklahoma in the national title bout. Will Muschamp’s defense was prepared for Bob Stoops and Jason White’s high-flying offense. They held the Sooners to 14 points, with Marcus Spears even taking an interception to the house.

The Tigers haven’t been elite like that defensively in…