LSU 42, Clemson 25
LSU knocks off Clemson 42-25, completes one of the most historic seasons in college football history
Jan 13, 2020, 11:14 pm
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Jamar Chase
The LSU Tigers are national champions. And their season is one that might not be topped for a long time.
The Bayou Bengals knocked off the defending champion Clemson Tigers 42-25 on Monday night, and the celebration in Louisiana is likely to last a while.
While LSU fans revel, they should also recognize what might have been the greatest single-season run in college football history.
While any list is subjective, many consider what the 1971 Nebraska Cornhuskers did to be one of the most impressive single seasons in college football history before this year. That team finished No. 1, and beat Oklahoma, Colorado and Alabama, the teams that finished 2-3-4.
Realistically, however, the modern era (post 2000), the teams that are most impressive start with 2004 USC. The 13-0 Trojans featured Heisman winner Matt Leinart, and destroyed Adrian Peterson and Oklahoma in the championship game 55-19. That group would lose the next season to another team worth considering, the 2005 Vince Young-led Texas Longhorns. The Horns averaged 50.2 points per game that season. Of course, the 2001 Miami Hurricanes had perhaps the greatest collection of talent on one team, with stars like Andre Johnson, Willis McGahee, Clinton Portis, Frank Gore, Vince Wilfork, Ed Reed...They were simply loaded.
But this LSU team takes a back seat to no one. Of the Tigers 15 wins, SEVEN were against teams ranked in the Top 10 when they played - Texas, Florida, Auburn, Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma and Clemson. Four of those teams were in the top 5 at the time they played. They faced 11 teams that played in a bowl or the playoff.
Heading into the championship game, the Tigers averaged 48.9 points per game, most in the nation. Quarterback Joe Burrow had a historic season, throwing for over 5,000 yards, completing nearly 80 percent of his passes and winning the Heisman Trophy. He set an NCAA single season record for touchdown passes.
LSU had two 1,000-yard receivers (Ja'Mar Chase and Justin Jefferson) and a 1,000-yard rusher (Clyde Edwards-Helaire) to go with their 5,000-yard passer. They scored 726 points, most in FBS history. They have four projected first-round picks in the NFL Draft this year alone and several others over the next two years. With all that, they deserve to be in the talk for best single season team ever.
When it counted most, they finished it by beating a near dynasty - a team that had not lost in 29 games - for a national championship.
With a season for the ages.
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Oswald Peraza hit a two-run single in the ninth inning to help the Los Angeles Angels snap a three-game losing skid by beating the Houston Astros 4-1 on Saturday night.
Peraza entered the game as a defensive replacement in the seventh inning and hit a bases-loaded fly ball to deep right field that eluded the outstretched glove of Cam Smith. It was the fourth straight hit off Astros closer Bryan Abreu (3-4), who had not allowed a run in his previous 12 appearances.
The Angels third run of the ninth inning scored when Mike Trout walked with the bases loaded.
Kyle Hendricks allowed one run while scattering seven hits over six innings. He held the Astros to 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position, the one hit coming on Jesús Sánchez’s third-inning infield single that scored Jeremy Peña.
Reid Detmers worked around a leadoff walk to keep the Astros scoreless in the seventh, and José Fermin (3-2) retired the side in order in the eighth before Kenley Jansen worked a scoreless ninth to earn his 24th save.
Houston’s Spencer Arrighetti struck out a season-high eight batters over 6 1/3 innings. The only hit he allowed was Zach Neto’s third-inning solo home run.
Yordan Alvarez had two hits for the Astros, who remained three games ahead of Seattle for first place in the AL West.
Key moment
Peraza’s two-run single to deep right field that broke a 1-1 tie in the ninth.
Key Stat
Opponents were 5 for 44 against Abreu in August before he allowed four straight hits in the ninth.
Up next
Astros RHP Hunter Brown (10-6, 2.37 ERA) faces RHP José Soriano (9-9, 3.85) when the series continues Sunday.