ATLANTA — Joe Burrow threw two touchdown passes in his first two seasons. As a first-year starter, his completion percentage was lower than 87 quarterbacks.
He entered his final season an afterthought, anonymous to most of the country. He enters his final game an all-time legend, author of one of the greatest playoff performances any sport has ever seen.
Again showcasing his status as the country’s best player, Burrow led LSU to its first national championship game in eight years by throwing for 493 yards and becoming the first player in bowl history to produce eight total touchdowns in the No. 1 Tigers’ 63-28 rout of No. 4 Oklahoma in Saturday’s Peach Bowl playoff semifinal at a sold-out Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
“It doesn’t surprise me they did the things they did,” head coach Ed Orgeron said. “But it does surprise me they did it with the ease that they did.”
In breaking numerous records, the Heisman Trophy winner opened by throwing for an incomprehensible 403 yards and seven touchdowns, while leading LSU to 49 first-half points. Justin Jefferson was the biggest beneficiary of Burrow’s precision and poise, making 14 receptions for 227 yards and four touchdowns.
“We go into every game thinking nobody can stop us,” Burrow said. “We think we need to score every time we touch the ball. If we don’t, then we’re still kind of chasing that perfect game.”
The former Buckeyes quarterback and LSU (14-0) next head home to New Orleans to face No. 2 Ohio State/No. 3 Clemson in the national championship on Jan. 13. The Tigers’ most recent national title victories (2003, 2007) both came at the Superdome. So did their most recent national title game loss (2011) against Alabama.
“The state of Louisiana is going to be on fire,” head coach/Louisiana native Ed Orgeron said.
The Tigers’ first-ever semifinal ended with the most points in the playoff era. Every drive was a blur. Scores were sandwiched between blinks.
Burrow needed 52 seconds to find Jefferson for a 19-yard touchdown on the Tigers’ first possession. Following an LSU punt — the box score confirms what no memory does — the Tigers scored touchdowns on seven straight possessions. The first six were all completed in under three minutes.
Following a 7-7 tie which lasted as long as a sneeze, Burrow hit Terrance Marshall Jr. for an eight-yard score. Then, a 35-yard touchdown pass to Jefferson, followed by a 42-yard score to Jefferson, followed by a 30-yard touchdown to Jefferson.
It was 35-7 and the second quarter wasn’t halfway through.
“When someone’s hot, why not keep going to them?” Jefferson said. “So Joe just kept finding me on the field, just making those big plays.”
The Sooners’ (12-2) third straight playoff loss — and fourth in five years — marks one of the most embarrassing moments in the school’s storied history. Like the previous two Heisman winners (Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray), runner-up Jalen Hurts ended his career failing to end the Sooners’ championship game drought (11 years).
LSU forced the nation’s second-ranked offense to go three-and-out on its first two drives. Hurts threw his first interception in seven playoff games, as the offense was held 15 points below its season average. The Sooners’ defense again doomed their playoff chances, falling so far behind as to eliminate the existence of the nation’s fourth-ranked ground game.
With 50 seconds left in the first half, Burrow found Marshall for a two-yard touchdown. LSU took a 49-14 lead to the locker room. Burrow then opened the third quarter with a touchdown run.
Plenty of time remained. Plenty of seats were available. Burrow took one on the bench.
Soon, he should be the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft. Sooner comes one chance at a bigger dream.
“I want to win a national title. That’s always been my drive since I was a sophomore in high school,” the Ohio native said this week. “When I envisioned myself growing up, being a football player, it wasn’t in the NFL. It was playing on January 13 in a dome somewhere for the national title.”