“Shoe-in” opponent Florida delivers LSU a must-need 2020 Win

Apathetic is not a word commonly associated with pastimes in the state of Louisiana.

The passion that Louisianans exhibit with good food, grand celebrations, and competitive sports has always been palpable to both natives and tourists. LSU football had never been excluded from this passion in my lifetime, but the combination of a perfect 2019 season and an anemic 2020 season has certainly done a good job of prying the interest and enthusiasm from Tiger fans’ hands.

Everything changed when freshman tight end Kole Taylor’s cleat landed 20 yards away from his foot on Saturday. I am almost certain that when he laced up the, now historic, shoe before the game, he had no idea it would destroy the College Football Playoff hopes of one team and deliver a Biblical level of enthusiasm to the other team.

That is exactly what happened when Florida cornerback Marco Wilson chucked Taylor’s cleat downfield in celebration of a Gator defensive stop. Instead, the unsportsmanlike penalty that followed extended LSU’s drive culminating in a 57-yard go-ahead field goal from LSU kicker Cade York. Florida would not answer, and LSU left a foggy night at The Swamp with a 37-34 lead and something far more important.

They would leave with hope.

Hope that better days are indeed ahead for a program that has experienced the highest peak and lowest valley in school history in the matter of eight months. Hope that despite the rumors of discord and culture problems plaguing the program, the players that decide to honor their commitment to finishing the season will continue to play hard for each other.

Detractors will still focus on the negatives. The LSU program is still fraught with problems, and no matter how funny it is to re-watch the four-year Gator cornerback hurl a cleat down field to deliver a win to the Tigers, changes still need to be made if LSU wants to return to competitive play in 2021.

There were plenty of positives though.

The Tigers came into the game with only 53 available players after illnesses and suffered from injuries and an ejection during the game, but LSU did not bat an eye, finally exhibiting the “next man up” mentality that Tiger coach Ed Orgeron often preaches about.

Freshman quarterback Max Johnson played great on the road in his first collegiate start finishing 21 for 36 with 239 yards and three touchdowns, and freshman wide receiver Kayshon Boutte had five receptions for 108 yards and a touchdown.

Freshman stepped up on the defensive side of the ball too. Cornerback Elias Ricks came up with a crucial pick six, the first for LSU at The Swamp since Corey Webster’s pick six in 2002 and defensive lineman Jaquelin Roy finished with two sacks.

This contest was not a one-off, flash in the pan game either. Three weeks ago, LSU almost pulled off another upset against a Texas A&M team ranked No. 5. The Tigers might lack the experience and the leadership to consistently win games against teams competing for the Playoff, but the Florida game is proof that this program can re-enter that conversation.

I wrote about how disappointed I was with the Texas A&M game specifically because I felt the Tigers had missed their last shot to leave the 2020 season with a memorable win, but the team proved a lot of people wrong on Saturday, including myself.

Obviously, LSU still has a long way to go on its way back to football prominence. However, delivering a morale-boosting upset win against a bitter rival like Florida right before the end of the year truly warms the “sole” this Christmas season and has once again given fans a reason to be excited for future.