LSU Hangs On to Skin the Gators in a SEC Thriller
By Scotty Nola
In a battle of two undefeated SEC “superpowers”, last night’s battle between 6th ranked LSU and 8th ranked Florida lived up to the hype and then some — as the Tigers had to hold off a Hail Mary in the closing seconds to escape with a one touchdown win.
For the Tigers, the game was marred by some of the issues that have plagued them all season: untimely penalties, mental mistakes, inconsistent offensive linemen and abysmal special teams play.
It was also a game marked with an excellent performance by the surging Brandon Harris, a signature Les Miles trick play for a score, and the usual Leonard Fournette excellence.
Here’s our re-cap of last night’s thrilling victory that strengthened LSU’s bid for a SEC Championship and a berth in the College Football Playoff:
First Quarter Florida 7 LSU 0
Oct 17, 2015; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; Florida Gators quarterback Treon Harris (3) throws against the LSU Tigers during the first half of a game at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
The first quarter started off with a surprisingly solid kickoff as Cameron Gamble booted it into the end zone for a touch back after LSU won the coin toss and deferred.
Deferring a coin toss is a good idea when you can play defense because if you score to close out the first half and get the ball back and score again to start the third quarter it makes life very difficult on the opposition.
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The defense did their part as Deion Jones and Lewis Neal blew up Florida RB Brandon Powell in the backfield on 3rd and 2 to force a punt.
Unfortunately Tre White did not do his job, muffing the punt on LSU’s 13 yard line and giving Florida a free second chance.
Lewis Neal continued to abuse the Florida offensive line, making big plays on 2nd and 3rd down to force a 4th and 1 but Florida decided to go for it and Treon Harris hit a wide open Jake McGee in the end zone for a score.
Horrible special teams play, followed by very solid defense but a mental breakdown that allowed Florida’s Tight End to stand in the end zone uncovered fr an easy score.
The early impression was that LSU had the more physically superior team, but Florida was going to fight hard and take advantage of mistakes when offered. This theme would continue throughout the night.
Second Quarter LSU 28 Florida 14
Oct 17, 2015; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU Tigers running back Leonard Fournette (7) carries the ball against the Florida Gators during the second quarter at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Crystal LoGiudice-USA TODAY Sports
After scuffling their way through a sloppy first quarter LSU began to do what they do best: move downhill.
The quarter began badly for LSU. Colin Jeter again started at TE for LSU but on the first play of the second quarter Dillon Gordon finally made an appearance after missing time with an Achilles injury.
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Gordon caught his first pass of the year on his first play back but re-injured his leg. He id not return. Hopefully he will recover before LSU plays Bama on November 7th.
It was Travin Dural who sparked the LSU offense as Fournette struggled after gaining 11 yards on his first touch.
Dural caught big passes to produce three straight first downs to get LSU into the red zone. The Tigers fed Fournette from there, and he did not disappoint, punching the ball in from the 2 yard line after lining up as QB in the Wildcat.
The next Florida drive was a short one, as Lewis Neal and Tashawn Bower combined for a sack and the defense held Florida on third down.
LSU started strong when they got the ball back with two good runs by Leonard Fournette. Starting Guard Maea Teuhama had to leave the game with cramps on the second run, something that has been a continued theme this season. He was replaced not by Josh Boutte but by Toby Weathersby.
Boutte was not injured, he played on special teams, so seeing Weathersby in with the starters in Teuhama’s absence would seem to indicate a change in the pecking order at Guard. Weathersby may not have helped his case here getting called for a false start in his brief appearance.
Fournette saved the drive with a big first down on a screen pass over the middle, giving Brandon Harris a chance to find Malachi Dupre in the end zone on a Flea Flicker to give the Tigers the lead.
The ensuing Florida drive was another three and out featuring another fantastic play by Lewis Neal. Neal was able to pancake Florida’s starting Right Tackle to open a clear path to the quarterback.
His sack forced a punt and LSU kept rolling right along on offense. LSU’s next drive was a 2 play affair, with Brandon Harris and Malachi Dupre accounting for 52 yards on a single pass to the Florida 6 yard line.
Fournette finished it off with a quick run to the end zone, opening a 21-7 LSU lead in a game the Tigers looked like they were finally taking control of.
The LSU defense must have thought the game was done because they sleepwalked through a 4 play 82 yard Gator drive capped with Florida TE Jake McGee catching his second completely uncontested TD of the game.
LSU answered quickly with a scoring drive featuring another big play from Harris to Dupre, this one for a touchdown right before the end of the half.
Third Quarter LSU 28 Florida 28
Oct 17, 2015; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; Florida Gators quarterback Treon Harris (3) runs past LSU Tigers safety Rickey Jefferson (29) during the second half of a game at Tiger Stadium. LSU defeated Florida 35-28.Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
With a 28-14 lead and the ball to start the third quarter, and momentum from scoring to close out the first half LSU had a perfect opportunity to put Florida down for the count.
Instead the Tigers offense came out flat and allowed Florida’s defense to dictate terms to them for the entire quarter. LSU had three possessions in the third quarter, all three resulted in a three and out situation, the last of them a punt that resulted in a Gators Touchdown.
This was easily the worst quarter of football the Tigers have played all year.
Fourth Quarter LSU 35 Florida 28
Oct 17, 2015; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU Tigers running back Leonard Fournette (7) carries the ball against the Florida Gators in the second half at Tiger Stadium. LSU defeated Florida 35-28. Mandatory Credit: Crystal LoGiudice-USA TODAY Sports
With the game tied after yet another special teams breakdown resulting in a tuchdown for the opposing team LSU took the only intelligent course of action available to them. They handed the ball to Leonard Fournette and asked him to take over the game.
Fournette and the Tigers offensive line responded with a long drive deep into Florida territory. It wasn’t until Fournette became winded and the coaches pulled him out for a breather that the drive stalled, forcing the Tigers to line up for a field goal attempt.
The Mad Hatter did not kick the field goal. Neither did Tigers place kicker Trent Domingue, for that matter.
The Brad Kragthorpe to Trent Domingue Touchdown pass on the trick play gave LSU a 35 to 28 lead with a little over ten minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. It was a lead the Tigers defense refused to relinquish.
It wasn’t an easy job. LSU was only able to get one more first down in the game, and because of that Florida had three possessions in the closing minutes. The defense held though, forcing one punt and standing firm on two fourth down plays.
The game was close, and LSU had to give four quarters of effort. It was also disappointing in some ways. LSU was clearly the better team. Florida was able to stay in the game because of LSU mistakes and special teams breakdowns.
The touchdown on a fake play by LSU’s field goal kicking unit made up for some of the bad, but at this point we can objectively say that LSU has the worst overall special teams unit in the country.
The coaches are aware of this, they were juggling special teams personnel a bit tonight in an attempt to spark things in that phase of the game. That didn’t work though, and special teams plays are clearly the weak spot of this team.
Nothing can detract from the fact that the Tigers were able to beat a Top 10 opponent under the lights at Tiger Stadium in a nationally televised game.
This was a big win, and LSU now has the inside track in the hunt for spots in the National Championship Playoff.
Game Balls as LSU Beats Florida:
Lewis Neal was an unstoppable force in this game, turning in a carrer game with three sacks and multiple tackles for loss and big stops on third down .
Brandon Harris was outstanding, going 13 of 19 for 202 yards and two touchdowns including a big 50 yarder to Malachi Dupre
Malachi Dupre also deserves notice. His four catches for 115 yards included two touchdowns and two catches of 50 and 52 yards.
Trent Domingue Anytime a field goal kicker of a team struggling on special teams converts a trick play for a score they deserve a game ball.
And of course Leonard Fournette who had his usual superb performance accounting for 181 yards on 31 carries and 2 touchdowns against the toughest defense he has faced all year.
That statline doesn’t tell the story with Fournette, it never does. The Tigers leaned on him when their offense was stalled and it looked like they were in danger of letting the game slip away.
He responded by carrying them to within scoring distance, creating the chance for Trent Domingue and the special teams to shine and score the game winner.
Next up for LSU is a home game next weekend at Tiger Stadium against Western Kentucky, before a bye week and a trip to Tuscaloosa for another SEC showdown at Alabama……….
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