The Louisiana State University football team, led by Head Coach and Louisiana native Ed Orgeron, completed their undefeated season and earned the title of National Champions in this year’s College Football Playoff National Championship. The No. 1 ranked LSU Tigers faced the No. 3 ranked Clemson Tigers in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, La. on Jan. 13. The LSU Tigers dominated the Clemson Tigers with a final score of 42-25.
Wesleyan faculty and students were getting excited about the game. Dawson Zimmerman, former Clemson punter and current high school English teacher, was enthusiastic about the game. Zimmerman said, “I think we’ve done a great job this season. I had some doubts coming into the year that we would be able to return back to the National Championship, but the team has done a great job of exceeding my expectations, and I am excited that we get to do it again.” Students were also very thrilled about the upcoming game. Clemson fan and sophomore Brooks Thomason said, “I hope Trevor Lawrence performs well, and of course the rest of the team, but my ultimate hope is to win the game.”
The game started off unexpectedly with Clemson in the lead for the start of the game. Clemson scored first which put a hush over the Superdome; fans saw a glimmer of hope for their team. However, this all changed when LSU senior quarterback Joe Burrow launched the ball down to sophomore wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase who scored LSU’s first touchdown. The game was all tied up 7-7. However, Clemson was determined to regain their lead and during the 2nd quarter, quarterback Trevor Lawrence passed the ball to wide receiver Tee Higgins who made a 32-yard run and scored another touchdown for the Clemson Tigers. The score was now 17-7 in addition to a career long 52-yard field goal by BT Potter in the 2nd quarter. No matter how hard Burrow tried, it seemed he could just not break through the Clemson defense.
However, this lead did not hold long, and by halftime LSU had scored three more touchdowns making the score 28-17. This pattern continued as LSU seemed to climb its way back up to victory. The final score was 42-25 in favor of the LSU Tigers, and Clemson fans could not be more upset. Wesleyan junior Allie Holmes said, “Obviously I was disappointed that Clemson lost. We needed our QB Trevor Lawrence to be at his best, and as he said after the game, he didn’t play well. But I was proud of them. Dabo Swinney and team will do what they do best – rebuild, work hard and…make another run at the National Championship next year.” Overall, this game was a whirlwind of emotions, but ultimately the LSU Tigers performed their best on the field and came out with the win.
