LSU entered the night riding a 4-0 win streak, with the hope of making that 5-0 against the Rebels…Bears…what are they called now, the Land Sharks from Ole Miss. The Magnolia Bowl as it has become to be known as was marred by the tragic loss of LSU Basketball player Wayde Sims on Friday morning. On a night set to commemorate Billy Cannon and his 1959 Heisman season, that also capped off the Tigers National Championship Season. Sims was honored tonight before the start of the game, with a moment of silence.
LSU leads the series 61-41-4 with the last meeting being a 40-24 drumming at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on October 21, 2017. Powered by the rushing attack of former Tigers’ Running Backs Derrius Guice and Darrel Williams. Derrius Guice would be the first player in SEC history to have 250 plus yards rushing in three separate games over a career, while Williams became the first player in LSU history to have more than 100 yards receiving and rushing in the same game.
Tonight’s game is the 107th meeting of these two teams, a rivalry that dates back to 1894. LSU has won five out of the last seven and dating back to 2002, 12 of the last 16. LSU has won the last four match-ups in Death Valley, and leads that series 40-24-1.
The Tigers won the toss and chose to defer until the second, Avery Atkins sailed the opening kick-off just about into the visitor seating section. The crowd was really behind the Tigers causing the Reb, er, Land Sharks to false start on the first play of the game, then Grant Delpit came up huge with an interception for LSU on 3rd and 15. LSU marched down the field, but after a stop and dropped pass they had to settle for a 53 yard field goal. Something that is within kicker Cole Tracy’s range, unfortunately the ball hit the cross bar and did not skip through tonight. The Tigers would come up inches short and turn the ball over.
On the Ole Miss ensuing drive, they would take the ball 52 yards and end up settling for a much easier 30 yard field goal. The Tigers would get the ball back, and go on to put on a clinic both offensive and defensively. Seeming to score at will, while holding the Ole Miss receivers that had been talked about so much during the week in check.
At the half, LSU is up 28-6. With receiving touchdowns coming from Ja’Marr Chase, and Justin Jefferson, and rushing touchdowns from Nick Brossette and Clyde Edwards-Helaire. It seems that the Tigers may have started to keep their foot on the gas, like they’ve been wanting to. Out pacing Ole Miss by more than double offensive production in the first half. LSU total offense 337, Ole Miss 157.
LSU came out in the third quarter and looked like they were going to run away with the ball game but a fumble by Joe Burrow, that was negated by a facemask penalty and another fumble by Nick Brossette caused the drive to stall. The Tigers ended up with 2 fumbles, inside the redzone, in the third quarter, something they hadn’t done in their previous four games.
The Tigers had five different ball carriers and six different receivers in the first quarter, Head Coach Ed Orgeron was looking to spread the ball around. “We wanted to give some different guys, some different chances to play. We thought Lanard Fournette came in and played a good game. We wanted to at some different things and we did.”
The Tigers put up nearly 600 yards of total offense tonight, and 45 points and still not play a complete game according to Orgeron, and that is a scary thing. The offense continues to get better week in and week out. Starting out against Miami they had just under 300 yards and this week they came up huge against a good Ole Miss team. With this game I believe that quarterback Joe Burrow will hopefully prove some of detractors wrong as he completed 72 percent of his passes and threw for almost 300 hundred yards in the Tigers win over Ole Miss.
OM LSU
First Downs 18 33
Net Rushing Yards 150 281
Net Passing Yards 178 292
Completions-Attempts-INT 19-38-1 18-25-0
Total Offense 328 573
Total Offense plays 69 75
Score 16 45
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