No. 8 LSU is still perfect in the EA Sports College Football 27 universe, but this one came with plenty of grit and very little style.
Tiger Rag’s simulation had the Tigers surviving a 17-6 win over 32-point underdog Louisiana Tech, a result that looked nothing like LSU’s Week 1 runaway against Clemson. The Tigers were supposed to handle this one easily, especially with Tiger Stadium rated as the toughest place to play in the game and LSU sitting second in the CFB 27 rankings. Instead, the Bulldogs hung around long enough to make it awkward.
The offense never found a real rhythm. Sam Leavitt finished 17 of 35 for 172 yards and a touchdown, and LSU’s passing game leaned on the same familiar names again. Ole Miss transfer Winnie Watkins led the way with four catches for 56 yards, while Hawaii transfer Jackson Harris added four receptions for 51 yards.
The scoring started slowly. Scott Starzyk put LSU on the board first with a 23-yard field goal at the 7:34 mark of the opening quarter, but Louisiana Tech answered with a 44-yard kick from Kaegan Kent to tie it before the second quarter began. The first touchdown didn’t come until 3:26 remained in the half, when junior running back Caden Durham broke loose for a 53-yard score to give LSU a 10-3 lead.
The simulation still hasn’t updated LSU’s backfield to match the current depth chart, keeping transfer Dilin Jones as the top option with transfer Stacy Gage behind him. Even so, Durham and Harlem Berry were the backs getting the meaningful chances in this world. Durham carried nine times for 134 yards, Berry added eight carries for 61 yards, and Jones had just two rushes for three yards.
After a quiet third quarter, Louisiana Tech trimmed the margin with a 43-yard field goal. LSU answered for the final points of the game when Trey’Dez Green hauled in a 5-yard touchdown pass with 11 minutes left. Green finished with three catches for 25 yards and the score.
It was not a clean performance from either side. Each team finished with 14 first downs and six punts, a sharp drop from the 38 times LSU moved the chains in the Clemson simulation. LSU outgained Louisiana Tech 374 yards to 266, though the Bulldogs actually ran 11 more plays.
Tech quarterback Blake Baker went 19-for-31 for 182 yards, and tight end Eli Finley was far and away his top target. Finley had seven catches for 92 yards, more than the rest of the Bulldogs combined. LSU also kept Tech receiver Jalen Mickens in check, limiting him to two receptions for 19 yards.
For a team ranked No. 8 in the real world and No. 2 in the game, a 17-6 finish against a 74-overall Louisiana Tech squad rated 98th is a strange look. But in EA Sports College Football 27, the Tigers are 2-0, even if this one felt a lot closer than anyone expected.
In Other News...
Lane Kiffin Opens Up On Tiger Stadium As LSU Drama Lingers
Lane Kiffins first year on LSUs sideline brought him his first chance to work a game from the home side at Tiger Stadium, and the setting lived up to the reputation on a night that ended with a win over Clemson. For a coach who has spent plenty of time around big venues, the atmosphere in Baton Rouge is still its own kind of backdrop, and this one offered the full LSU experience right away.
The football part is only one layer of the story, though, because LSU is still dealing with an SEC lawsuit tied to recruiting former NFL players, a case that has been delayed by a judge. Kiffin did not add the two players at the center of the dispute to his roster, and the conference also left a recent meeting without announcing any punishments or reprimands, leaving the situation hanging as the season moves forward. [Read more 🡒]
Brian Kelly Just Added Fuel To LSU Fans Clemson Debate
Brian Kellys move into the CBS Sports booth has not kept him far from the conversation around LSU, especially when the Tigers come up in the same breath as Clemson. During a recent discussion of Clemsons uneven stretch, Kelly pointed to coaching and scheme as part of the reason the Tigers stumbled in their loss to LSU, arguing that talent alone does not solve everything when the structure around it is not working.
He also made clear that Clemsons roster looks different now than it did in its peak years, which only adds another layer to the long-running comparison between the programs. Kelly went on to address the recent tension between Dabo Swinney and a reporter, saying he was disappointed by how both sides handled the exchange, a comment that is likely to stir more debate among LSU fans who are still eager to measure what that win meant. [Read more 🡒]
LSU Fight With The SEC Just Became A Bigger Fairness Debate
LSUs dispute with the SEC has turned into more than a rules fight, becoming a broader test of how the league wants to police fairness across college sports. The conference sued the school over its intention to roster NFL training camp invitees who still had extra college eligibility, a move that briefly put expulsion on the table before LSU ultimately backed away from using those players.
Even with that threat eased, the issue is hardly settled because the SEC has since signaled it could still pursue other discipline. The debate has also spilled beyond the courtroom and into the media, where Paul Finebaum and Stephen A. Smith have weighed in on whether the conferences response was justified or whether LSU was being singled out for pushing the boundaries in a way others might eventually try too. [Read more 🡒]