LSU's lack of first quarter offense is a serious problem

The LSU offense started slow yet again against Florida. After two lackluster starts against Clemson and Louisiana Tech, Tiger fans were hoping that by Week 3, the offense would be more in rhythm and put together a better start. But a poor first quarter against Florida proved otherwise.

The Tigers had four first quarter drives against Florida, and mustered up just one first down and 45 yards of total offense. Even after getting momentum thanks to an interception from Dashawn Spears, LSU couldn't capitalize. The Tigers went three-and-out for the third consecutive drive following the interception. Set up with good field position, their fourth drive led to a 48-yard field goal from Damian Ramos on the first play of the second quarter.

The Tiger running game struggled early on yet again, managing just 16 yards on six carries through 15 minutes. Five of those yards came from a scrambling effort from Garrett Nussmeier. To make matter worse, Nussmeier wasn't sharp through the air and several penalties kept backing up the Tiger offense. Most notably, LSU was called for two false starts in the first quarter against Florida, one of which came immediately following a timeout.

LSU's slow offensive starts need to get fixed

LSU's drive chart in the first quarter this season is not pretty:

The Tigers have failed to take control of games in three straight weeks, which has left LSU fans scratching their heads. So far this season through three games, LSU has scored just seven points in the first quarter. That simply isn't going to cut it. Joe Sloan's offensive game plans haven't been effective, which has put the LSU defense in tough spots.

Thankfully, they've been able to get away with it thanks to LSU's strong defensive play. The Tigers have allowed just 13 first quarter points this season. But asking the defense to continuously save the offense from a deep hole in the first quarter is not a sustainable game plan.

The Tigers aren't even really making their opponents work on defense in the first quarter. Plays down the field haven't been there, and the lack of running game has made LSU easy to defend. If the Tigers are going to compete for an SEC title and National Championship, faster starts on offense are much-needed.