Todd Politz, LSU Director of Digital Media and Staff Reports
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Joe Burrow had 393 yards passing with three touchdowns and Clyde Edwards-Helaire scored four times, as No. 1 LSU snapped No. 2 Alabama’s 31-game home winning streak, 46-41, on Saturday night in Tuscaloosa.
LSU, which improved to 5-0 in the SEC and 9-0 overall for the fifth time in school history (2011, 1973, 1958, 1908), tied a school record with its fourth top-10 victory of the season.
LSU defeated Alabama for the first time since 2011.
“A long time coming,” LSU head coach Ed Orgeron said in his postgame press conference. “We felt all week we were the better football team. We said it to our team on Monday, but we’re going to have to go ahead and prove it. We did that today.
“Coming here, I felt like, you know what? We got it. We finally got the tools we need. We finally got the players we need. We finally got the coaching staff we need to beat these guys.”
The Tigers built a 33-13 halftime lead and never relinquished the advantage. Alabama (8-1, 5-1 SEC) got within six points of the Tigers three times in the fourth quarter but were unable to stop the Tigers offense in the game’s final quarter.
Burrow finished 31-of-39 passing for 393 yards with touchdown passes to Edward-Helaire, Ja’Marr Chase and former Parkway star Terrace Marshall Jr.
Edwards-Helaire had 180 yards of total offense, with three rushing touchdowns and 103 yards, along with nine catches for 77 and a score.
Chase finished with six catches for a team-high 140 yards, while Justin Jefferson had seven catches for 79 yards and tight end Thaddeus Moss added six catches for 46 yards.
Already mentioned among Heisman Trophy frontrunners, Burrow cemented his position with the performance against Alabama.
“I always thought I would be on this stage,” Burrow said in his comments to the media after the game, “but I didn’t think I would be in this jersey. It’s been a bumpy road and a long one, but I couldn’t be in a better place.”
The Tigers outgained Alabama 559-541, as the Tide had a touchdown receptions of 64 and 85 yards from quarterback Tua Tagovailoa along with a 77-yard punt return for a touchdown.
Tagovailoa was 21-of-40 passing for 418 yards with four touchdowns and an interception. DeVonta Smith led the Tide with seven catches for 213 yards and two touchdowns. Alabama running back Nahee Harris carried 19 times for 146 yards with a touchdown.
LSU’s defense was the star of the first-half show, holding the Tide offense to one big-play touchdown in the opening 30 minutes – a 64-yard touchdown catch by Smith with 6:43 remaining in the half.
The Tigers stopped two Alabama drives with turnovers on downs and Patrick Queen intercepted Tagovailoa late in the second half, allowing LSU to increase its halftime advantage to 20 with a receiving touchdown by Edwards-Helaire.
Linebacker K’Lavon Chaisson was all over the field for the Tigers, recording 10 tackles (3.5 for loss). Linebackers Jacob Phillips and Queen, along with safety JaCoby Stevens each added seven tackles.
LSU returns to action on Saturday, Nov. 16, when the Tigers travel to face Ole Miss in Oxford. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. CT on ESPN, with the LSU Sports Radio Network pregame show starting at 4 p.m.
President Donald Trump attended the game, watching from a suite on the east side of Bryant-Denny Stadium. He is the first sitting president to watch LSU football since William H. Taft in 1909.
