Undefeated LSU Making First Appearance In College Football Playoff
By: Tony Thomas December 20, 2019
The undefeated LSU Tigers (13-0) are making their first appearance in the College Football Playoff (CFP) when they take on the Oklahoma Sooners on December 28th at the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl at Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Kickoff is set for 3 pm CT on ESPN.
#1 And never looked back
The Sooners will be the sixth top 10 opponent LSU has faced this season, with LSU winning 5 of those (5-0). LSU has won 9 out of their last 10 versus top 10 teams.
As the #1 team in the AP Poll for the seventh consecutive week, LSU is 5-0 in 2019. Those five wins came against Alabama, Ole Miss, Arkansas, Texas A&M, and Georgia.
LSU has been ranked in the AP Top 25 for 36 consecutive weeks.
This will be the third meeting between LSU-Oklahoma, and the first since the 2004 BCS title game in New Orleans. LSU beat Oklahoma 21-14 and won the BCS Championship. LSU has won three national titles in school history: 1958, 2003, and 2007. The series record between the Tigers and Sooners is tied at 1-1.
The Tigers have won 14 straight games dating back to last year’s Fiesta Bowl win over UCF. That is the third-longest streak in the nation.
“One Team, One Heartbeat”
Head Coach Ed Orgeron leads LSU into this matchup with a 38-9 record. 29 of those wins have been by double-digits, 10 wins vs. Top 10 opponents, and 16 wins over Top 25 opponents. His 38 wins over a 47-game span are second behind only former coach Les Miles (39-8) over that same period.
Orgeron was named the Eddie Robinson National Coach of the Year, the AP National Coach of the Year, and the SEC Coach of the Year.
LSU is tied with Oklahoma with 8 wins per season over the last 20 years, the longest streak among Power 5 schools.
The Tigers are 22-1 when having a 100-yard rusher, and they are 36-2 when scoring 20 or more points. LSU leads the nation in red-zone offense at 96.9% success, scoring on 63 out of 65 trips. They have scored 50 touchdowns and kicked 13 field goals. Of those 50 touchdowns, 28 were passing and 22 were rushing.
The Tigers lead the nation in total offense at 554.3 yards per game. Oklahoma is ranked just behind the Tigers at 554.2 yards per game, led by QB Jalen Hurts. Hurts, a Heisman finalist, is averaging 376 yards per game. He has gained 4889 total yards: 3634 passing and 1255 rushing.
An Offensive Juggernaut
LSU eclipsed the 500-yard mark in total offense in 10 out of 13 games this season, which includes three games of 600 yards or more and one game over 700 yards. LSU set a school record with 7,206 yards of offense in 13 games.
The Tigers offense has produced a 4000-yard passer (Joe Burrow: 4715 yards), a 1000-yard rusher (Clyde Edwards-Helaire: 1290 yards) and two 1000-yard receivers (Ja’Marr Chase: 1498 yards and Justin Jefferson: 1207 yards).
LSU is #2 in passing offense (386 yards per game) and #3 in scoring offense (47 points per game). They are averaging 47.8 points per game and 40 or more points in 10 out of 13 games, a school record. They also scored 50+ points in four games and 60+ points in two games.
Well deserved recognition
Burrow will go down as the most decorated LSU football player in the school’s 126-year history. During the month of December, Burrow earned recognition and has won every major award:
- Heisman Trophy (in a landslide vote).
- Maxwell Award (Player of the Year).
- Walter Camp (Player of the Year).
- AP Player of the Year.
- !st Team All-American
- First LSY QB to be named unanimous All-American.
- Davey O’Brien Award (Top QB)
- Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award (Top QB)
- SEC Offensive Player of the Year (by AP and SEC coaches).
- !st Team All-SEC (Unanimous).
- Burrow joins Bert Jones (1972) as the only two All-America QB’s in LSU history.
Other players and coaches have also received recognition:
- WR Ja’Marr Chase was named the Biletnikoff Award winner as the nation’s top receiver. Chase also garnered first-team All-American (unanimous) and All-SEC honors. He had 18 receiving touchdowns, which led the SEC.
- S Grant Delpit was named the Thorpe Award winner as the nation’s top defensive back. He was named consensus All-American and chosen 1st team All-SEC. He had 56 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 1 sack, and 2 interceptions.
- CB Derek Stingley, a true freshman, was named Consensus All-American after recording 6 interceptions this season.
- Passing Game Coordinator/WR Coach Joe Brady was named the winner of the Broyles Award, given to the top assistant coach in college football. Brady, along with offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger, has transformed Burrow and company into the most prolific offense in college football.
LSU has never trailed in the fourth quarter of a game this season. And, they have only trailed four times, the last time coming in the Auburn game. They are currently on a streak of 21 straight quarters without trailing an opponent.
More On The Tiger Offense
- LSU is currently on a streak of seven years with a 1000-yard rusher, dating back to Jeremy Hill (1401 yards) in 2013.
- The Tigers have scored 60 of their 78 touchdowns in 3 minutes or LESS.
- Of their 162 offensive possessions, LSU has gone 3 and out only 21 times.
- Burrow is averaging a TD pass on every nine passes thrown.
- Eleven different players have scored a touchdown this season.
- TE Thaddeus Moss, son of NFL Hall of Fame WR Randy Moss, set a school record this year for catches by a tight end with 38, to go with 435 yards and a touchdown.
- Burrow has completed 20 or more passes in his last 16 games, dating back to last season.
LSU presents matchup problems for the Sooner defense. The Tigers will lineup three wide receivers and they utilize TE Moss as a pass-catcher. Chase, Jefferson, and WR Terrance Marshall have combined for 42 touchdowns, and they create separation to make plays in space and gain big yardage after the catch.
Oklahoma does have a dynamic play-maker in WR CeeDee Lamb. Look for CB Stingley to draw the assignment to shut down Lamb. If that happens, then Hurts will have to take over the game and make plays with legs as well as his arm. This will make the Sooners somewhat one-dimensional. The LSU defense will have to keep pressure on Hurts and keep him in the pocket and not let him get loose in the open field and make plays.
The LSU defense has stepped up over their last three games. They have allowed a combined 37 points, or 12 points per game, allowed only 3 first-quarter points and 9 in the first half, and intercepted five passes.
Material for this article sourced from redsticksocial.com
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