Bowl Championship Series

January 7, 2008 - BCS National Championship - #2 LSU vs #1 Ohio State

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• published: 21 Jun 2016
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Flynn Leads LSU With 4 TDs As Tigers Extend Buckeyes' SEC Struggles: NEW ORLEANS, LA -- The second-ranked Tigers danced, dodged and darted their way into the end zone Monday night for a 38-24 victory, turning the title game into a horrible replay for No. 1 Ohio State. 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 Florida 41-14, they barely did better. But this was unprecedented. Playing at their home-away-from-home in the Big Easy, the Tigers (12-2) became the first two-loss team to compete for the title. Still, LSU was a runaway No. 1 in the final Associated Press poll. The Tigers received 60 of 65 first-place votes from a national media panel. Georgia, Southern California, Missouri and Ohio State rounded out the top five. Georgia had three first-place votes while Southern Cal and No. 7 Kansas each had one. And while Miles got to hoist the $30,000 crystal prize, surely many fans around the country were wondering if someone else was equally worthy. 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. LSU rallied from an early 10-0 deficit, taking a 24-10 halftime lead that held up. 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. 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 national championship came in 1958. "We came out here with the right frame of mind. We kept hanging in there," Flynn said. 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. Better on offense and defense, the Tigers got two big plays on special teams -- Ricky Jean-Francois blocked a field goal, and LSU took advantage of a roughing-the-kicker penalty. Flynn finished 19-for-27 for 174 yards and was picked the game's most outstanding offensive player. Ohio State was trying to win its second BCS title in six years, and add to the one that Tressel captured by upsetting Miami 31-24 in double overtime for the 2002 championship. For sure, the Buckeyes were perhaps the most-maligned No. 1 team in recent memory, with critics attacking them all season. Tressel gave his players a 10-minute DVD filled with insults hurled at them by television and radio announcers, hoping it would motivate his team. Instead, the Tigers ravaged the nation's best defense and showed that maybe all those naysayers were right. Only five minutes into the game, Ohio State and its all-brass band was blowing away the Tigers. LSU looked dazed and defensive coordinator Bo Pelini -- who now becomes Nebraska's full-time coach -- had few answers. Fortunately for the Tigers, their offense started clicking. On a team full of flash, it was the reliable ol' Hester who settled down LSU. First, he barreled into All-America linebacker James Laurinaitis for a short gain. Both players are the rugged type and in a nice show of sportsmanship, Laurinaitis -- whose dad, Joe, once starred as "Animal" in the "Legion of Doom" wrestling tag team -- helped up Hester. Hester broke off a 20-yard run on the next play, and LSU eventually got a 32-yard field goal from Colt David that made it 10-3. That score late in the first quarter seemed to jazz everyone in purple and gold. The Tigers zoomed into fast motion, the band's Golden Girls suddenly put more bounce in their step and thousands of fans started screaming even louder. Flynn also seemed to recognize exactly what Ohio State was trying to do. LSU quarterbacks spend a lot of time with an Xbox, playing a custom-made video game to read defenses. Apparently, what worked on the screen did even better on the field. Two big penalties against Ohio State helped set up Flynn's 13-yard touchdown pass to Dickson, who somehow found himself uncovered. Flynn punctuated the strike by hollering, giving a wild fist pump and putting up both hands to signal TD. As Ohio State trudged off the field and LSU ran on, it was all over. It only took a while to confirm it.