NEW ORLEANS — At first, Joe Burrow couldn’t believe that Ja’Marr Chase was as open as he was. A weapon like that, the LSU quarterback essentially assumed he’d have to work the ball around to the rest of his receivers before he could free up Chase, who’d scored 18 touchdowns this season, who was Burrow’s No. 1 target most of the year, who won the Biletnikoff Trophy as the best receiver in the sport.
But after a sluggish start to this national championship game — two series, six plays, zero first downs — Chase came over to Burrow and delivered a surprising message.
“They’re giving me some space,” receiver alerted quarterback.
That wasn’t just music to Burrow’s ears, it was an entire symphony. And from that moment on, Burrow-to-Chase defined this game, and so will come to define this LSU team long after the cheers of this 15-0 season and 42-25 win fade from the ears and the throats and the memory of the fans.
“Those first couple of series I didn’t think there was any way they wouldn’t look to shut him down,” Burrow said. “And then we came to the sidelines and he said they were laying off him and obviously I had to come to the conclusion that I’d go to him every chance we could.”
Good idea.
Better execution.
Chase made nine catches. He gained 221 yards. He scored two touchdowns, including the 52-yarder that might’ve been the most important play of the day, since it erased Clemson’s quick 7-0 lead, tied the game, and set a tone for how LSU would attack Clemson’s defense the rest of the night. It also was his 19th TD of the year, setting a new Southeastern Conference record for most TD catches in a season.
The other one, a 14-yarder with 5:19 left in the second quarter, gave LSU its first lead of the night, 21-17, an advantage it would never relinquish.
“This is a dream come true,” said Chase, a New Orleans native and a sophomore who will be one of the blazing stars of next season. “To say I had all my goals written down on my mirror, I accomplished every goal I wrote down. I’ve got to come up with new goals now. This season has been ridiculous, that’s all I can say.”