Welcome everyone to the latest edition of #4Downs where I break down what went right and what went wrong for the LSU Tigers! This week, I look at LSU’s nailbiter of a win against Auburn.
1st Down: Too Many Drive-Killing Penalties
While the game-winner on Saturday afternoon was set up by a defensive pass interference call in the final two minutes of the ballgame got them just short of the redzone, but there were several moments against Auburn that saw several big plays get negated due to penalties. One of the more notable ones was late in the first quarter when Austin Deculus was penalized for a false start on what would have been 3rd & 2 and that forced them to kick a 53-yarder that Cole Tracy missed.
Add that with a few other penalties sprinkled throughout, this could have been an absolute thrashing that made everyone stand at attention and realize that LSU is way better than the projections.
2nd Down: Burrow Breaks Out
Joe Burrow had shown flashes of being a great quarterback in the last two ballgames, but it was more about how good of game manager he is (see: Brossette 50-yd TD vs Miami). That wasn’t the story coming out of the win on Saturday as he had a solid performance on the plains of Auburn with 249 yards through the air, highlighted by a huge pass to Derrick Dillon that made it a two-point ballgame in the fourth quarter.
While the completion percentage wasn’t ideal (44%), he was able to get things done that perhaps other QBs that have donned the purple and gold in recent years have had a hard time doing and winning inside Auburn’s home stadium was one of those.
3rd Down: Strong Third Down Defense
You’ve got to give credit to LSU’s defense as they got things done, especially on third downs allowing Auburn to only convert four of the 12 third downs they had.
You look at each of those third down conversion attempts and you’ll see that Auburn couldn’t get anything going offensively on those plays, especially in the first half where it seemed like LSU had everything under control defensively. One of the keys to the ballgame was the fact that they were able to stop some of these drives dead in their tracks.
4th Down: Tracy Has the Clutch Gene
We all knew heading into the ballgame that Cole Tracy is an extremely talented kicker. We all saw him nail 50-yarder against Miami and Southeastern Louisiana and the legend of Assumption College transfer continues to grow.
Sure, he missed a 53-yarder to start the afternoon, but at the end of the day, he was clutch when it mattered the most with a 42 yard field goal that was a no-doubter from the second it took flight. The man has ice water in his veins and he has the potential to have one of the better kickers to put on the purple and gold in the last couple of seasons.
Extra Point: Time to Start Taking LSU Seriously
There’s been a lot of people that have bought into the hype that is LSU football and when you look at the overall performance, you have to stand at attention and give this team a ton of props. While the talent up and down the roster isn’t at the 2011 level, they’ve shown the world of college football that they aren’t going anywhere.
As a realist, I picked them to go 8-4 and lose this ballgame before the season. Fast forward to now, I think the Tigers could be 10-2 at best because I feel like Georgia and Alabama are still going to be tough ballgames despite those being at Death Valley. All this being said, LSU just roared back into some big bowl game conversations with a win at Auburn.
-Clint Domingue