Tag: 2019 CFP National Championship

Ryan Clark: ‘Joe Burrow is responsible for the two greatest turnarounds this millennium’

The legend of Joe Burrow continues to grow

The talk of the town right now is that dude Joe Burrow. After leading the LSU Tigers to a national championship, he has the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl.

Burrow arrived in Baton Rouge ahead of the 2018 college football season from Ohio State. The graduate transfer had two years of eligibility, and he wanted an opportunity to compete for a starting job. He won it over then-sophomore quarterback Myles Brennan. What Ed Orgeron and the staff didn’t know is he would change the game for the Bayou Bengals.

LSU had gone four seasons since its last double-digit win season and seven seasons since its last trip to a New Year’s Six bowl game. That first year under Burrow, LSU won nine regular-season games and earned a trip to the Fiesta Bowl against Central Florida. There was a moment within that game that the Legend of Burrow began, as many have credited it.

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

The hit on Burrow left him shaken and the team was ready to go to backup Myles Brennan, but the transfer quarterback wasn’t about to go out like that. On the play that left Burrow on his knees, Brandon Moore had picked off Burrow and ran the ball back 93 yards for the score. While Burrow was pursuing Moore, Joey Connors absolutely rocked the quarterback. The pick six left LSU trailing 13-3.

And so it began.

Burrow went on to throw four touchdowns and handed the UCF Knights their first loss in two seasons. The Tigers won a New Year’s Six bowl game for the first time since their 2011 BCS Championship game loss. They then went on to one of the single-best seasons in college football history in 2019.

It was time for a new challenge in the NFL. After being selected No. 1 in the 2020 NFL draft, he returned to his home state to lead the Cincinnati Bengals. The team was 2-14 the season before it selected the 2019 Heisman Trophy winner. In his rookie season, Burrow led the Bengals to another two wins in 10 games before a knee injury. After Cincinnati selected Ja’Marr Chase in the first round of the 2021 NFL draft, Burrow and Chase led it to a 10-7 record.

That team that was 2-14 two seasons ago is now heading to the Super Bowl. Former LSU Tiger Ryan Clark was a guest on ESPN’s “Get Up” where he stated Burrow is responsible for the two greatest turnarounds in this millennium. Clark admitted he wasn’t the biggest Burrow fan when he arrived on the Bayou, but he can now say “Burrow is THAT DUDE.”

It is hard to argue what Clark is saying about Burrow, but I would add that he is responsible for two of the three greatest turnarounds this millennium. Nick Saban’s arrival at LSU couldn’t have come at a better time as Tigers football was on a brutal stretch. From 1997-99, the program won 16 games combined before Saban led them to a national championship in 2003.

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Who was better: 2019 LSU Tigers or 2020 Alabama Crimson Tide?

Who do you have in this debate?

The two College Football Playoff semifinal games are almost upon us. The SEC is well represented with both participants of the conference title game making the top four.

Two years ago the LSU Tigers were gearing up to take on the Oklahoma Sooners in the Chick Fil A Peach Bowl. That game was a one-sided affair as the Bayou Bengals ran away with it before halftime. Justin Jefferson and Joe Burrow were absolutely lethal in that game.

Burrow and the Tigers went on to take out the defending champions, Clemson in the CFP national championship game 42-25. That gave LSU the perfect 15-0 campaign and their third title since 2000. Each time they won it with a different head coach. Brian Kelly will be looking to make it four before his time is up on the Bayou.

With the annual tournament about to kick off, we look at where that magical run ranks among every CFP team since the playoff began. According to ESPN (subscription required), it was a top-two performance.

Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

What ESPN Says…

Plenty of coaches have attempted to modernize their offense in the hopes of giving their program a shot in the arm. Ed Orgeron’s 2019 team set the bar impossibly high for any future modernizers. With help from an elite skill corps, Joe Burrow threw for 5,671 yards and 60 touchdowns (!!!). Once LSU’s defense got healthy late in the year, the Tigers were untouchable, beating Alabama in Tuscaloosa, then winning their last six games by an average of 30 points.

The Tigers came in at No. 2 behind last year’s champions, the Alabama Crimson Tide. An argument could be made for these two teams to be No. 1 overall. This debate won’t go away any time soon.

Where do you stand in the battle of 2019 LSU Tigers vs 2020 Alabama Crimson Tide?

As far as the new head coach is concerned, Brian Kelly’s Irish teams ranked No. 29 and No. 31 on the list. At least they weren’t No. 32, sorry Spartans Wire.

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Comment below with your pick for the No. 1 CFP team of all-time

Ranking the champions: Is the 2019 LSU team the best in the modern era?

A look at where the 2019 LSU Tigers football team ranks among the modern era of champions.

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This feels like a conversation around the water cooler in the office, just who had the best team since 2000? Fans of the Tigers will automatically bring up the 2019 LSU football team that romped their way through the schedule. They had some close matchups along the way, and some monster blowouts as well (looking at you Oklahoma).

Looking back at the schedule from that season only three teams even came within striking distance of knocking of LSU. The Texas Longhorns lost by 7 in Austin, 45-38. That game was entertaining and sometimes stressful but the Tigers found a way to survive.

Later that season they beat Auburn 23-20 and Alabama 46-41 in consecutive games in late October, early November. Auburn held LSU to the lowest offensive output of the year, following that game they scored 37+ in every game afterward. There is a reason the 2019 team put 14 players into the NFL through the draft, they were loaded.

Where do they rank among the best champions in the modern era? Some might agree with the fans down on the Bayou. The LSU Tigers come in at No. 1 in the top 10 of the 247Sports list.

Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

The No. 1 spot is debatable, like all rankings, but this LSU team was special. Fueled by perhaps the most notable quarterback performance this century, LSU’s magical unbeaten run to a national title during the 2019 season featured an unprecedented seven wins over top-10 teams (at the time of game). The run also included record-setting numbers from Heisman Trophy winner Joe Burrow (60 touchdown passes). The Tigers won 12 games by double digits and led college football in scoring at 48.4 points per game.

That 2019 team would be tough to beat in terms of putting another team against them for the No. 1 spot. The Tigers also flexed their muscle by knocking off the defending national champions, Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Not often do you get to see the No. 1 and No. 2 teams go at it in the regular season. That game did not disappoint. For now, we will agree with 247Sports and say that the 2019 LSU Tigers are the best in the modern era.

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Where former LSU Tiger Joe Burrow ranks among best CFB players since 2000

Where Joe Burrow ranks among the top college players since 2000.

In the 2018 college football season, Joe Burrow had a decent year leading the LSU Tigers to a 10-3 record with a final ranking of No. 6. No one was aware of what was about to occur in the 2019 season. Burrow would take the world by storm with one of the best statistical seasons ever at the college level.

The Tigers marched through the 2019 campaign with a perfect 15-0 record and won the College Football Playoff National Championship game. The team played close matchups with the Texas Longhorns, Auburn Tigers, and Alabama Crimson Tide. Outside of the three games they won by a combined 15 points, no one was in the same class as the Tigers.

Looking at how Burrow performed, many would put him among the best to ever do it for a single season. But where would he rank for an entire career?

247Sports ranked Burrow at No. 6 and the No. 4 quarterback on the list. This list goes back to the beginning of the 2000 season.

Career Stats: 8,852 yards | 76 touchdowns | 11 interceptions 

Joe Burrow’s magical 2019 season is the freshest in everyone’s minds and it came at a historic level. Not only did he guide the LSU Tigers to a 15-0 national championship campaign, Burrow lit it up on the field with plenty of talent around him. He finished the year with 5,671 yards, 60 touchdowns and six interceptions, while completing 76.3% of his passes. It was evident early on that Burrow was doing something special. His 60 touchdowns and 202.0 quarterback rating are NCAA records and he also led the NCAA in completion percentage and passing yards. He went on to become the No. 1 overall pick by the Cincinnati Bengals in April.

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