For LSU, dreams of the College Football Playoff are over.
For the second game in a row, LSU could not stop a running quarterback as Alabama pounded the Tigers, 42-13.
Tide quarterback Jalen Milroe was held to just 109 yards of passing, but he more than made up for that with a whopping 195 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns, including a 72-yard touchdown run on the first play of the fourth quarter that sent most of the 102,283 fans to the exits.
“What we thought would be an exciting evening turned out to be a disappointing evening,” LSU head coach Brian Kelly said after the game. “I take ownership of not getting our guys in the right position tonight, and we just did not make the best of the opportunities that we had. There were certainly a lot of things that did not go our way tonight, with not being able to get off the field on 3rd down, turning the ball over on offense, and it just seemed there were at times some key things in the game that didn’t go our way.”
Tigers Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier completed 27 out of 42 passes for 239 yards and one touchdown, although the touchdown came with just 11 seconds left in the game with LSU trailing 42-6.
However, Nussmeier also threw two interceptions, one of which happened in Alabama’s end zone, and lost a fumble.
With three losses on the season and their playoff hopes dashed, Coach Kelly said the team will keep fighting to the end and will get ready to play in a bowl game at the end of the season.
“You know, these guys are not like, ‘We’re out of the playoffs.’ They are disappointed and I am disappointed that we did not live up to the standards of LSU football,” said Kelly. “That affects us more than the damn playoffs.”
Tigers Linebacker Greg Penn III said the defense had no answers for Milroe.
“Coming into the game, I thought our game plan was really good on Milroe,” said Penn. “Obviously, he has great speed, and we can’t really account for that in practice or on film until you are in the game. Her is just a great player.”
Before the game, as widely rumored, LSU wheeled out a live tiger for the first time since 2015.
The tiger was not the school’s official live mascot, Mike VII, who lives in a 15,000 sq. ft. habitat just outside Tiger Stadium; instead, it was a Bengal named Omar who was hauled in from Florida.
While the spectacle drew a great deal of controversy over the health and well-being of the tiger, it went off without incident, and the tiger was wheeled out of the stadium prior to kickoff.
LSU is now on a two-game losing streak and will try to break that streak next Saturday in Gainesville against the Florida Gators.
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