Louisiana Love: Feels Good To Be No. 1

YEY! LSU WINS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!!!

After falling behind 10-0 early in the first quarter, LSU scored 24 consecutive points to lead by two touchdowns at the half. Ohio State never quit, but the Buckeyes couldn't really threaten the lead against LSU's vaunted defense. The Tigers turned up the heat on Ohio State quarterback Todd Boeckman and forced him to hurry too many throws. The Tigers also did a good job of containing Beanie Wells after the tailback ran for 119 yards in the first half. Once Ohio State fell behind by three touchdowns early in the third quarter, the Buckeyes couldn't use Wells much to get them back into the game. LSU forced Ohio State into a couple of costly mistakes -- the Tigers blocked a field goal and intercepted a pass down the left sideline to set up touchdowns in the first half.
What didn't reserve safety Harry Coleman do for LSU's defense? In the first quarter, the sophomore from Baldwin, La., recovered a muffed punt return by LSU's Chad Jones at the Tigers' 16. In the second quarter, Coleman blitzed and hit Boeckman, forcing him to underthrow a pass down the left sideline. Cornerback Chevis Jackson intercepted the pass and returned it 34 yards to the Ohio State 24, setting up the touchdown that put LSU ahead 24-10 at the half. Coleman added another fumble recovery early in the fourth quarter, after linebacker Ali Highsmith drilled Boeckman on a fourth-down play. "To go to a national-championship game two years in a row and lose like this is incredible. It hurts tremendously," Ohio State running back Beanie Wells said.As much as they might have wanted to, the Buckeyes couldn't even escape the memory of the Gators here in New Orleans. By chance, Florida Coach Urban Meyer was one of the analysts on the Fox broadcast crew Monday night. At one point during the halftime show, Ohio State legend Eddie George, another one of the Fox commentators, turned to Meyer and said, "This feels like déjà vu all over again. Are we still in Arizona? This game has the same feel as last year."

Too easy. No. 2 LSU danced, dodged and darted its way into the end zone Monday night, turning the BCS national championship game into a horrible replay for No. 1 Ohio State. It was over early, with Matt Flynn throwing four touchdown passes in a 38-24 win.
Playing at their home-away-from-home in the Big Easy, the Tigers (12-2) became the first two-loss team to play for the title.
Shouts of "SEC! SEC!" bounced around the Superdome as the Tigers won their second BCS crown in five seasons. They are the first school to win a second title since BCS rankings began with the 1998 season.
"My team is the No. 1 team in the land," said All-American defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey, who passed up the NFL draft to return for his senior season.
And in a season of surprises, this was hardly an upset: Ohio State once again fell apart in college football's biggest game. A year after the Buckeyes were routed by Tim Tebow and Florida 41-14 in the Arizona desert, they barely did better.
"We just didn't do the things you need to do to win a ballgame of this nature. We're very aware that LSU's a deserving champion," Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said.
Jacob Hester bulled for a short touchdown, Early Doucet wiggled loose for a touchdown and Dorsey led a unit that outplayed the top-ranked defense in the nation.
Ohio State (11-2) had little to celebrate after Chris "Beanie" Wells broke loose for a 65-yard TD run on the fourth play of the game.
Yet while LSU coach Les Miles got to hoist the $30,000 crystal trophy, certainly many fans around the country were peering into their crystal balls, wondering if someone else was worthy of the title. Southern California, Georgia, West Virginia, Kansas and Missouri all put on impressive shows in bowl games, and will be among the favorites in 2008.
The final Associated Press poll was to be released early Tuesday.
LSU, whose two losses both came in triple overtime, became just the fourth favorite to win in 10 BCS championship games. The Tigers added to the crown they won in 2003 — their other title came in 1958.
Miles probably got a little extra satisfaction, too. Though he turned down a chance to return home to Michigan, he did something his alma mater hasn't done recently — beat the Buckeyes.
The loss left Ohio State at 0-9 overall in bowl games against teams from the Southeastern Conference. The SEC delights in whipping Big Ten teams in what's become a rivalry that steams up fans on both sides.
The Tigers rallied from an early 10-0 deficit, taking a 24-10 halftime lead that held up. Two big plays on special teams kept them ahead — they blocked a field goal, and later took advantage of a roughing-the-kicker penalty.

5 Reasons Why LSU Beat Ohio State

It was a close game, for about 1 quarter, but LSU made more plays than Ohio State. Check the top 5 reasons why LSU beat the Buckeyes.

1. TEAM SPEED SHMEED: "You can't tell me it's a speed thing; I'm stubborn about that," OSU linebacker James Laurinaitis said. "If it was a speed thing we would have been getting caught from behind. They out-physicaled us and that's why we lost the game." I agree totally, there was no difference in team speed. LB James Laurinaitis, DE Vernon Gholston and CB Malcolm Jenkins for the Buckeyes were just as fast as Jacob Hester, Early Doucet and Brandon LaFell. But at the skill positions, (Hartline?) LSU had a fiesty, violent edge. It's not just speed, it's violent speed. That running-at-you-at-full-tilt-to-hit-you-in-the-mouth speed, that's what LSU had. The Big Ten, certainly the elite programs like OSU and Michigan, have more than a little bit of the same speed that dominates the SEC (Did you see what Michigan did the Florida?). Ohio State has learned its lesson from last year and will try to spread LSU out, and not let them pursue plays from in front of them. OSU has been practicing the fame "Tiger Drill" to prepare for the tiring ordeal the game will become in the 4th quarter. Boeckman does have two athletic, speedy wideouts in Brian Robiskie and Brian Hartline who have great hands and know how to get open.


2. QUARTERBACK PLAY (OR LACK OF): Todd Boeckman is a big, lanky quarterback at 6-foot-5 and 235 pounds, but hew wasn't nearly mobile enough to withstand the athletic heat that LSU put on him. By the time LSU's Ali Highsmith clotheslined Boeckman and the ball squirted out the rout was on. Boeckman joins a distinguished list of quarterbacks, Sean Glennon, Tim Tebow, John Parker Wilson, that have been hit really hard by the Purple and Gold defensive line. Flynn, who didn't play in the SEC Championship Game because of a strained shoulder, completed 19 of 27 passes for 174 yards with four touchdowns and one interception.

3. BUCKEYES DEFENSE DIDN'T SHOW UP: The Buckeyes were No. 1 in the nation against the pass with 148.17 yards allowed, but Flynn carved them up for 4 touchdowns and 174 pretty much in 2 quarters (2nd & 3rd) with an assortment of awkward throws and laser-sharp daggers. The OSU defense seemingly was content to let him throw, playing the run more heavily than it should. As good as the Buckeyes front four is, the LSU secondary, even without All-American safety Craig Steltz (stinger) made its presence felt to turn the game around, especially when Harry Coleman blitzed and hit Boeckman, forcing him to underthrow a pass down the left sideline. Cornerback Chevis Jackson intercepted the pass and returned it 34 yards to the Ohio State 24, and the Tigers were in business.

4. HOMEFIELD ADVANTAGE: To say the scales were tipped in LSU's favor is an understatement. The LSU campus is only 80 miles away in Baton Rouge. "We know the dome," LSU running back Jacob Hester said. "We're in the same hotel. We know the city. Half the team is from New Orleans, and the other half has been here so many times they know where everything is." The crowd was loud a(but curiously quiet after Beanie Wells' touchdown run). OSU just couldn't keep the hush in effect as their lead turned into a deficit as the Tigers reeled off 31 straight points.

5. BUCKEYES OFFENSE DIDN'T HAVE CONSISTENCY: A comedy of weird errors by the Buckeyes, including five personal fouls and three turnovers, enabled LSU to erase a 10-0 deficit and roll to a 31-17 lead before a garbage TD made the score look respectable. The Buckeyes were'nt able to establish consistency: OSU's Chris "Beanie Wells turned in the half of a lifetime after he steam 64 yards up LSU's gut on the game's second play from scrimmage. The problem was, sooner or later, OSU had to pass the ball. LSU, an absurdly deep team, had the consistency it usually had all season: start off slow, take a blow then release a barrage of players and formations at the oppenent to shatter their will. They have six running backs, two quarterbacks and defensive playmakers waiting in the wings. LSU had been especially adept at

murdering quarterbacks and it happened Monday night all over again.

In Leaving U-M, Carr Gets One Last Jab At Les Miles

Michigan coach Lloyd Carr is trying to mess with Les.
The two don't like each other, and Carr is intentionally trying to distract Les Miles from a potential championship season.
How else to explain a retirement announcement ONE WEEK before the season's end (so what, you lost again to OSU, YOU ALWAYS LOSE against them)? Why do it when your team can still finish the season on a positive note?
Why? Because his nemesis Les Miles is the frontrunner to take his job. It's a tough spot for both coaches, but Carr could carry himself alot better than he's doing it. I'm not saying he's not a decent man: It's true that he reworked his contract last year to arrange for an escape clause this year, and it's true he got all his assistants 2-year-deals. But he is deliberately trying to get in Les Miles' head in the middle of a No. 1 ranking and chance to win it all at LSU.
In the end, Carr wanted to beat at least one nemesis, one villain, being that the Ohio State Buckeyes were having none of it. But, that's alright. Les Miles will hold it together, he's not the greastest Xs and Os coach, but he can hold a group together, I'll say that.