The LSU Tigers and Oklahoma Sooners met on Saturday, Dec. 28, 2019, in the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl in Atlanta, Ga., with a spot in the College Football Championship game on the line. LSU came into the semifinal match as the No. 1 seed with an undefeated season and Oklahoma was the No. 4 seed and was the only one-loss team in the semifinals. The Sooners’ defense was unable to stop the Tigers’ offense and LSU came prepared to play on both sides of the ball, handing Oklahoma a 35-point loss, 63-28.
Oklahoma started with possession of the ball and was unable to produce any points on their opening drive. LSU, however, did put the first points up in their opening drive when Joe Burrow connected with Justin Jefferson for a 19-yard touchdown, making it 7-0. Three drives later, the Sooners would answer with a touchdown of their own after Kennedy Brooks rushed the ball three yards to tie the game, 7-7, with seven-and-a-half minutes left in the first quarter. That would be the only time the score was tied in the entire game.
Heisman Trophy winner, Joe Burrow, would connect with Terrace Marshall, Jr. for an eight-yard touchdown pass and again with Jefferson for a 35-yard touchdown pass to put another 14 points on the board before the end of the first quarter. The Tigers led going into the second quarter, 21-7.
Burrow and Jefferson were the dynamic duo the first half of the game and they opened the second quarter with a 42-yard touchdown. Oklahoma turned the ball over in their opening drive after Jalen Hurts had his first pass intercepted by Kary Vincent, Jr. The Tigers capitalized on the turnover and Burrow connected with Jefferson again, this time for a 30-yard touchdown pass and the score was 35-7 with just over nine minutes to go.
The Sooners answered in their next possession when Hurts rushed the ball two yards for a touchdown and slightly closed the gap in the score to 35-14. LSU responded in their next drive when Burrow threw a 62-yard pass to Thaddeus Moss for a touchdown, and then again in their next possession when Burrow and Marshall connected for the two-yard touchdown score, giving the Tigers a resounding 49-14 lead going into halftime.
Joe Burrow has thrown 7 TD passes, tied for the most ever in a bowl game. … It's halftime. #CFBPlayoff pic.twitter.com/AZcs1lbHSD
— ESPN (@espn) December 28, 2019
LSU had the ball first to start the second half, and as in many of their drives, the opening drive ended with a touchdown as Burrow rushed the ball himself for a three-yard touchdown. Oklahoma answered in their opening drive with a touchdown score after Hurts took the ball 12 yards for a rushing touchdown with four minutes on the clock as the scoreboard red 56-21.
The third quarter ended with the Tigers having possession, and for the first time, LSU didn’t capitalize on the opening drive as Cade York missed a 46-yard field goal attempt. The Sooners, on the other hand, did produce points in their final drive after T.J. Pledger rushed the ball for a one-yard touchdown, making the score 56-28. That was the last time Oklahoma would score, but LSU did score one more touchdown when John Emery, Jr. rushed the ball for six yards to finish out the game, 63-28.
Several records were broken during the Tigers’ domination of the Sooners during this playoff game, including the most points in a half and the most points in a game along with total team yards. Jefferson also broke the receiving touchdown and receiving yards records on Saturday night. In addition to the accolades Burrow has already earned, he also broke the records for most passing yards in a half as well as the most passing touchdowns, total passing yards, and total yards in the 2019 Peach Bowl.
Next up for the SEC champions is the National Championship game in New Orleans on Jan. 13, 2020, against Clemson.
The LSU Standard of Performance
🔗 https://t.co/duJqgVYNo2#GeauxTigers | #CFBPlayoff pic.twitter.com/wD6n2zQx5W
— LSU Football (@LSUfootball) December 29, 2019
Earlier Saturday, LSU offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger lost his daughter-in-law in a plane crash.
After LSU's win over Oklahoma, he was awarded the game ball #CFBPlayoff pic.twitter.com/GusmuqaVvL
— ESPN (@espn) December 29, 2019
