ATLANTA – LSU quarterback Joe Burrow and the top-seeded Tigers turned in a first half for the ages in Saturday’s first College Football Playoff semifinal, a breathtaking offensive display even as their coordinator grieved a horrific tragedy from the coaches’ box high above the field.
This team from the bayou is truly something special. With one more victory, it will be a national champion.
In his first game as a Heisman Trophy winner, Burrow threw for seven touchdowns and 493 yards as LSU romped to a stunning 63-28 victory over No. 4 Oklahoma in the Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
The Tigers (14-0) are clicking on all cylinders heading to the Jan. 13 title game at the Superdome in New Orleans – they’ll take on No. 3 Clemson (14-0), which won 29-23 against No. 2 Ohio State (13-1) in the Fiesta Bowl later Saturday – having dismantled the Sooners (12-2) with a 30-minute outburst that will long be remembered in Cajun country.
“We go into every game thinking nobody can stop us,” Burrow said.
Well, the Sooners certainly couldn’t.
Burrow tied the record for any college bowl game with his seven touchdown passes – which all came before the bands hit the field for the halftime show. Justin Jefferson was on the receiving end for four of those, also tying a bowl record.
As if that wasn’t enough, Burrow scored an eighth touchdown himself on a 3-yard run in the third quarter, thoroughly dominating his expected duel with Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts, the Heisman runner-up.
LSU wide receiver Justin Jefferson extends over the goal line to complete a touchdown catch while Oklahoma safety Pat Fields attempts to tackle him during the first half of the Peach Bowl semifinal on Saturday. / AP photo by Ian MauleYet the postgame celebration was weighed down by heavy hearts.
LSU offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger learned shortly before kickoff that his daughter-in-law, 30-year-old broadcaster Carley McCord, was among five people killed in a plane crash in Louisiana. The small aircraft went down shortly after takeoff for what was supposed to be a flight to Atlanta for the game.
Tigers head coach Ed Orgeron delivered the news to Ensminger, who was seen with tears running down his cheeks but stuck to the task at hand.
“Coach, we’re going to get through this,” Ensminger told his boss.
Then the coordinator headed to his usual spot, calling plays alongside passing game coordinator Joe Brady.
It was a brilliant, poignant performance in the face of such grief. The players didn’t learn until afterward what Ensminger was going through.
“I can’t think of what he was able to do today with the circumstances,” Brady said. “It speaks to the type of man he is.”
LSU needed only three plays to race 42 yards for its first score – a perfectly thrown ball over Jefferson’s shoulder for a 19-yard touchdown less than three minutes into the game.
Oklahoma briefly put up a fight. Hurts’ 51-yard pass to CeeDee Lamb set up a 3-yard touchdown run by Kennedy Brooks that tied the score at 7. After that, the rout was on.
It was 49-14 by halftime, and the Tigers’ potent spread offense made this one look much like the Harlem Globetrotters carving up the Washington Generals, only it was the Sooners playing the hapless victims.
Jefferson hauled in a 35-yard pass for touchdown No. 2. Then a 42-yarder for No. 3. And, finally, a 30-yard scoring strike that left him counting off four fingers for the crowd – all before the midway point of the second quarter.
Terrace Marshall Jr. contributed to the onslaught with scoring catches of 8 and 2 yards. Tight end Thaddeus Moss – the son of NFL Hall of Fame receiver Randy Moss – made his daddy proud by getting free behind the secondary, hauling in a pass and shoving off a fast-closing defender to complete the 62-yard scoring play.
“One team, one heartbeat,” Orgeron said.
LSU defensive end Glen Logan (97) and linebacker Patrick Queen hit Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts during the second half of the Peach Bowl national semifinal on Saturday in Atlanta. / AP photo by Danny KarnikIt was a miserable finale for Hurts, who closed out a nomadic college career that began with him leading Alabama to a pair of national championship games before losing his starting job to Tua Tagovailoa. After graduating, Hurts transferred to Oklahoma for a one-and-done season that produced some dazzling numbers but ended short of the ultimate goal.
Running for his life most of the game, Hurts was largely stymied on the ground and through the air. He ran for a pair of touchdowns but gained just 43 yards with his legs. He was held to 15-of-31 passing for 217 yards, giving up a brilliant, leaping interception to Kary Vincent Jr. that quickly brought the LSU offense back on the field as the Tigers were blowing the game open.
“We needed to take advantage of every opportunity we had against a team like this,” Hurts said. “We failed to do that.”
Oklahoma defensive back Brendan Radley-Hiles was ejected early in the second quarter for a brutal hit on LSU’s Clyde Edwards-Helaire. With Burrow scrambling toward the sideline, Radley-Hiles delivered the blindside shot to Edwards-Helaire coming out of the backfield.
The officials did not throw a flag, but a video review showed that Radley-Hiles leaped into the defenseless player with a shoulder to the helmet.
Three plays later, Burrow went deep to Jefferson for the touchdown that extended LSU’s lead to 28-7.
Oklahoma has made the playoff four times in its six-year history, but it has yet to win a game. That could affect the way the selection committee views the Sooners the next time they’re in the mix – or any other Big 12 school, for that matter.
While this game will be remembered for the dynamic offensive showing, LSU’s defense kept up its encouraging turnaround over the latter part of the season. The Tigers held Oklahoma to 322 yards – far below its 554.2-yard average coming into the game, which ranked second nationally behind LSU. The front line kept the heat on Hurts, who was sacked twice and often wound up on his backside when he got the ball away.
The Tigers will head back to Louisiana for a de facto home game against the Fiesta Bowl winner. That mirrors their last title run during the 2007 season, when they beat Ohio State 38-24 in New Orleans for the Bowl Championship Series title.
“Just getting there is not our final destination,” Orgeron said, echoing his thoughts after LSU beat Georgia to win the Southeastern Conference title in early December at the same Atlanta venue. “We’re looking to win it.”