LSU beat (up and on) No. 2 Georgia in Death Valley 36-16 in front of a nearly full capacity crowd in Tiger Stadium. This marked the 3rd time in Tiger Stadium history that LSU has beaten a Top 2 opponent. The first time occurred in 1961 against Ole Miss so as much as my sons ridicule me for being old, that was 12 years before I was born. The last time prior to today was in 1997 when LSU beat No. 1 Florida. I was in the LSU Student Section for that epic win. Today was awesome as well!
One week after suffering their first loss of the season, LSU responded with a resounding and convincing win against the presumed best team in the SEC East. LSU used a time-tested, winning formula for it’s 6th win (3rd against a Top 10 opponent this season): controlling both lines of scrimmage, unleashing a suffocating defense, elite special teams play, creating turnovers while not having any and feeding off the home crowd that was electric from pre-game until well after the game ended as thousands of fans, almost the entire LSU student section, rushed the field and celebrated with the team.
True to his word, Ogeron and his Tigers were the aggressors on offense and defense and took the fight to UGA all game. Ogeron even took a page out the Mad Hatter’s coaching binder by going 4 for 4 on 4th down which not only allowed LSU to control the ball and clock more but also gave a clear message to his squad: we play to win instead of playing not to lose.
LSU’s much maligned offensive line established itself early in the 1st Qtr and LSU never looked back. Clyde Edwards-Hilaire had a coming out party and led the LSU offensive unit with 145 yards on 19 carries. He continued running the ball hard and elusively. The Offensive line created spaces for LSU back and Brossette added 64 tough yards on 16 carries. Burrow even jumped in on the rushing attack and had 66 yards rushing on 13 attempts including a 59-yard run on a QB read option when LSU was trying to run clock to end the game. That long run resulted in a rushing TD by Brossette late in the 4th Qtr.
Burrow completed 15 of 30 for 200 yards passing. He also added 2 rushing TD’s at the goal line. While this wasn’t Burrow’s best game in terms of statistics, he did more than just manage the game. He missed a few throws, one early in the game that would have been a long TD, but overall he and the offensive skill position players executed well against a talented and deep UGA defense. Amazing what LSU can now do on Offense since it has a SEC starting level QB who know how to make plays with his arm, legs and most importantly with his head.
The biggest improvement from last week to this week was that of the defense. For the 11th straight game, LSU has not allowed a 1st Qtr TD! UGA’s rushing attack had LSU on its heels in the 1st Qtr when they amassed 69 rushing yards. However, LSU made some adjustments and started controlling the line of scrimmage. Unlike last week, LSU not only swarmed to the football but also made gang tackles. Last week, LSU missed numerous tackles. LSU didn’t whiff on many today and when they did, other LSU defenders were there to assist. For some inexplicable reason, Smart and UGA abandoned the run after the 1ST Qtr as they only produced 44 rushing yards the last 3 Qtrs combined. Talk about breathing a sigh of relief!
LSU consistently harassed and pressured Jake Fromm and held him to only 16 of 34 for 209 yards with a garbage time passing TD and 2 interceptions. Fromm missed a few open receivers on the night like Burrow did for LSU. Kristian Fulton made a ESPN highlight reel interception in the 3rd Qtr. Devin White was back to his usual self making tackles all over the field. Delpit and Greedy Williams again had strong outings. Aranda did a great job of confusing Fromm and creating pressure from different angles and from different levels on the field. Michael Divinity Jr played his best game as a Tiger and Jacoby Stevens and Todd Harris had big sacks that ended drives and helped keep UGA off the scoreboard. John Battle had a Int and made 8 tackles on the night and even Kary Vincent was making tackles throughout the game. LSU’s Defensive Line did a magnificent job all night as well.
LSU’s Special Teams was elite and again proved that one of the most significant additions to Ogeron’s coaching staff was that of Greg McMahon, the Special Teams Coach. Cole Tracey was perfect in the game going 5 for 5 on FG’s and making all 3 extra points. In my opinion, Tracey is well on his way to having the single greatest year for a FG kicker in the history of LSU. LSU again didn’t get much in the return game which is troubling considering how many freak athletes are on the roster. The player formally wearing No. 7 (Giles and his absurd No 12) was again the main punt returner and again he fair caught the ball but only a few times because The UGA punter kept shanking the ball out of bounds nullifying any chance for a fair catch or a return. Avery Atkins boomed the ball through the end zone all night and late in the 4th Qtr with the game in hand, he purposely kicked the ball short to the front end of the UGA end zone. The UGA returner took the ball out and was blasted during the return causing a fumble that LSU would recover.
LSU entered the game on Sat as a 7-point underdog so hats off to Coach Ogeron and the entire LSU coaching staff for this dominating win. Not only did LSU physically whip UGA on Saturday but more importantly, LSU was the better coached and better prepared team. The game was clean in terms of penalties and while UGA had 4, LSU only had 2 penalties all game. This game and for the vast majority of the season, LSU has gotten play calls in quickly and well before the clock expire. Today, LSU used a hurry up Offense to keep UGA from substituting and from getting properly aligned. Kudos to Coach Ogeron and Coach Ensminger for being decisive and have their players ready. The most egregious play call of the night was made by Kirby Smart when UGA called for a fake FG from the LSU 14-yard line with LSU only up 3-0. Smart rolled the dice and came up snack eyes when LSU covered the fake FG and caused a fumble on the play that LSU would recover. For some unknown reason, Smart and UGA also decided to abandon the ground attack, you know, the one that Florida used a week earlier to beat LSU. Smart’s decision to throw early and often in drives created unfavorable down and distance situations and Jake Fromm was not able to deliver.
So on a day when No.2 , No. 6, No. 7, and No. 8 all lost, LSU put on a dominant performance on CBS for all the world to see. My hunch is that LSU will catapult back up the polls likely to No. 7 when they host the Bulldogs from Starkvegas next Saturday at 6 pm. I trust this coaching staff to not be peaking ahead to Bama yet and I believe the team will be able to focus on the task at hand after this victory. Take care of Miss St like we are supposed to do this season and you have a Nov 3rd date to host yet again the Game of the Century, aka the Bama game.
Areas that have to improve:
- While LSU was 8 for 8 in the Red Zone, imagine how the score and game would have tilted to LSU sooner had they exchanged a few of those 3’s into 7’s.
- 3rd Qtr Blues continue. At least LSU made UGA eat up almost 6 minutes and forced them to settle for 3 coming out of halftime. LSU has got to figure out how to win the 3rd Qtr battle.
- Return Game (Broken Record)- find a dynamic player who can catch the ball and help change field position.
- TOO MUCH RED! Valerie and I got to campus around 10 am and as we walked on Skip Bertman Dr close to the Vet School, I though my eyes were playing tricks on me when I saw an incredible number of UGA Tents. As we proceeded to walk around campus, UGA fans were everywhere. More UGA tents were located in prime locations throughout campus. Based on what I had scene on twitter and Facebook earlier in the week, I knew there would be many UGA fans at this game. I had guessed 15K would be in attendance. When I entered Tiger Stadium, I was shocked to see the flood of Red and Black sitting everywhere. I bet there were over 25K UGA fans in Tiger Stadium today and probably closer to 30K! 4 UGA fans sat next to me and they were as polite and nice as any opposing team’s fans I have ever met and talked to. Now the drunk frat UGA fan that sat directly behind me was another story. Thankfully, Valerie was getting a coke at the concessions stands when I warned the punk to watch his mouth after I had heard one too many curse words. He complied especially after he was nicely warned by a LSU Stadium Rep of a complaint by a fan for using vulgar language. I didn’t report the guy but it was good to know I wasn’t the only one tired of his mouth. Back to my point, Tiger Stadium was loud and full today. Tiger fans were awesome from before kickoff until well after the game was over but for the life of me, how in the world do you sell so many tickets to the opposing team’s fans. I get supply and demand. I get the idea of making money but can’t we at least help the home team by selling tickets to LSU fans who will show up and cheer on the Tigers!?! Please, for the love of football and boudin balls, don’t sell your tickets to fans of the team in Red from Tuscaloosa. Please!
Geaux Tigers!