No. 11 LSU’s mostly impressive but incomplete performances raise a few questions.

Do the Tigers lose focus when they get a sizable lead?

Are the Tigers playing possum, with the SEC opener at No. 7 Auburn looming next Saturday?

Are the Tigers as good as they’ve looked during really fast starts in the first two games?

Or are they a young team prone to inconsistency that might catch up with them this week?

All of those questions probably can be answered “yes” as long as the proper number of qualifiers is included. None of the answers can fully explain who the Tigers are two games into the season.

The bottom line is LSU is 2-0 and hasn’t been seriously challenged by either Miami, which was ranked No. 8 in the preseason poll and favored to beat the Tigers before succumbing 33-17, or Southeastern Louisiana, which was expected to be manhandled by the Tigers but was merely handled in a 31-0 outcome Saturday in Tiger Stadium.

But whether it qualifies as nitpicking or genuine reason for serious concern, there is reason to wonder if LSU might get exposed at Auburn.

The Tigers rolled to a 33-3 lead against the Hurricanes, then seemed to lose their edge. Miami, as one would expect, kept competing, trying to at least salvage some pride if not threaten to win the game.

The Hurricanes came up with a pair of touchdowns and were a couple more from potentially evening the score with most of the fourth quarter left to play. The LSU defense rose up, said that’s enough of that, and the offense at least contributed a few first downs to allow the defense a breather and keep the field position manageable.

There was no real harm done, and pollsters were so impressed by the entirety of the performance that they jumped the Tigers from No. 25 to No. 11.

They recognized that the performance indicated that they had underappreciated the Tigers going into the season, so they made a correction.

Then came the FCS Lions from nearby Hammond, La., who were several tiers lower than the Hurricanes as a challenge. SLU had put up a lot of yards and points in their opener but nonetheless came up short and lost to Louisiana-Monroe.

So the expectation was that the Tigers could pretty much name the score, and they started off looking like they wanted to name a big one. LSU rolled to a 14-0 lead in less than 12 minutes.

It extended the lead to 24-0 at halftime but managed just Cole Tracy’s 50-yard field goal until Joe Burrow launched a Hail Mary and Stephen Sullivan answered with a 40-yard touchdown reception on the final play of the first half.

And that was that, except for a late touchdown that was witnessed by a fraction of the crowd, most of which had already started home to beat traffic and begin gnashing teeth in anticipation of Auburn.

Though the overall perception of LSU has been elevated by the 2-0 start, one thing hasn’t changed: Most of the lingering questions have to do with the offense, not the defense.

Sure, SLU came away with 18 first downs, but just 254 yards and, most importantly, zero points. So the LSU defense has been outstanding, and if the only blemish is that it gave up two touchdowns to Miami, well, that’s not much of a blemish.

But the offense is still a cause for concern despite some good stuff. Nick Brossette looks like a legitimate lead runner after two straight 100-yard games. Burrow has been efficient and effective, though he still hasn’t been asked to show off the whole playbook.

The offensive line, though, which was a work in progress during preseason camp, remains a work in progress as it prepares to go to Auburn.

It has been good at times and not so good at others. It will be challenged to be very good for 60 minutes when it faces Auburn.

Is it up to the challenge? The first two games suggest that Brossette will have a difficult time getting 100 yards a third time and that Burrow will be under some duress, as he was against Miami, especially in the early going.

“We have a lot of work to do,” head coach Ed Orgeron said after Saturday’s victory. “Miami had a lot of plays in our backfield and Southeastern had a lot of plays in our backfield. We have a lot of work to do.”