Cole Tracy is only going to be an LSU Tiger (3-0, 1-0 SEC) for one year, but he is making the most of it three games in. Tracy may have missed his first field goal against Auburn (2-1, 0-1 SEC) early on Saturday, he was able to pull it off when it mattered the most to help LSU come away with a 22-21 road win.
Things couldn’t have started out any better for LSU as on the second play from scrimmage, Grant Delpit intercepted Jarrett Stidham and got them deep in Auburn territory. Nine plays later, Clyde Edwards-Helaire ran it up the middle to give them an early lead.
After a 33-yarder from Tracy halfway through the second quarter, Auburn made it a 10-7 ballgame with a march down the field capped off by a seven-yard run by JaTarvious Whitlow.
The Plainsmen got out in front before the half when Shaun Shivers ran it in from seven yards out, making it 14-10. They seemed to start imposing their will in the third quarter with Stidham connecting with Darius Slayton to make it a double-digit lead.
LSU started to fight back though, getting a 27-yarder from Tracy with 3:58 left in the third. The momentum shifted into LSU’s favor once again in the fourth quarter when Joe Burrow connected with Derrick Dillon on a 71-yard touchdown pass to make it 21-19 after failing on the two-point conversion.
LSU’s defense stepped up on the next drive forcing Auburn to go three and out and with 5:38 left on the clock, they were able to travel a good length of the field thanks to a big defensive pass interference call putting them into field goal range and giving Cole Tracy his big moment with a 42-yard field goal going through the uprights as time expired.
LSU will return to action on Saturday when they take on the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (2-0) with kickoff set for 6 pm.
-Clint Domingue