ATLANTA -- Joe Burrow turned in the greatest performance yet in his Heisman Trophy season, throwing for seven touchdowns and 493 yards as No. 1 LSU romped to a breathtaking 63-28 victory over No. 4 Oklahoma in the Peach Bowl College Football Playoff semifinal game Saturday.
The Tigers (14-0) head to the national championship game clicking on all cylinders, having dismantled the Sooners (12-2) with a first half for the ages.
Burrow tied the record for any college bowl game with his seven touchdown passes -- which all came before the bands hit the field for the halftime show at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Justin Jefferson was on the receiving end for four of those scoring plays, also tying a bowl record.
For good measure, Burrow scored an eighth touchdown himself on a 3-yard run in the third quarter, thoroughly dominating his expected duel with Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts, the Heisman runner-up.
The impressive victory came with heavy hearts. Shortly before the game, LSU offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger learned that his daughter-in-law, broadcaster Carley McCord, was among five people killed in a plane crash in Louisiana.
The small plane went down shortly after takeoff for what was supposed to be a flight to Atlanta for the game.
Ensminger had tears running down his cheeks during warmups, but he was in his usual spot high above the field when the game kicked off, calling plays along with passing game coordinator Joe Brady, the winner of the Frank Broyles Award this season.
It was a brilliant, poignant performance in the face of such tragedy. The players didn't learn until afterward what Ensminger was going through.
"He's the MVP right now," LSU Coach Ed Orgeron said in a halftime interview with his team leading 49-14.
LSU needed only three plays to race 42 yards for its first score -- a perfectly thrown ball over Jefferson's shoulder for a 19-yard touchdown less than three minutes into the game.
Oklahoma briefly put up a fight. Hurts' 51-yard pass to CeeDee Lamb set up a 3-yard touchdown run by Kennedy Brooks that tied the score at 7-7.
After that, the rout was on.
The Tigers' potent Spread offense made this one look much like the Harlem Globetrotters carving up the Washington Generals, only it was the Sooners playing the hapless victim.
Jefferson hauled in a 35-yard pass for touchdown No. 2. Then a 42-yarder for No. 3. And, finally, a 30-yard scoring strike that left him counting off four fingers for the crowd -- all before the midway point of the second quarter.
Terrace Marshall contributed to the onslaught with touchdown catches of 8 and 2 yards. Tight end Thaddeus Moss -- the son of NFL Hall of Fame receiver Randy Moss -- made his dad proud by getting free behind the secondary, hauling in a pass and shoving off a fast-closing defender to complete a 62-yard scoring play.
"What a tremendous job by everybody," Orgeron said. "One team, one heartbeat. Everybody in our organization. We got tremendous play by Joe Burrow and have a great coaching staff."
It was a miserable finale for Hurts, who closed out a nomadic college career that began with him leading Alabama to a pair of national championship games before losing his starting job to Tua Tagovailoa. After graduating, Hurts transferred to Oklahoma for a one-and-done final season that produced some dazzling numbers but ended short of the ultimate goal.
Running for his life most of the game, Hurts was largely stymied on the ground and through the air. He ran for a pair of touchdowns but gained just 43 yards with his legs. He was held to 15-of-31 passing for 217 yards, giving up a brilliant, leaping interception to Kary Vincent Jr. that quickly brought the LSU offense back on the field as the Tigers were blowing the game open.
"We needed to take advantage of every opportunity we had against a team like this," Hurts said. "We failed to do that."
While this game will be remembered for the dynamic offensive showing, the Tigers' defense kept up its encouraging turnaround over the latter part of the season. They held Oklahoma to 322 yards -- far below its 554.2-yard average coming into the game, which ranked second nationally behind LSU.
The front line kept the heat on Hurts, who was sacked twice and often wound up on his backside when he got the ball away.
Sports on 12/29/2019