With most of the crowd of 92,449 still waiting in anticipation Saturday night, LSU sophomore place kicker Colt David made the kick of his collegiate career and boosted the No. 9 Tigers to a 23-20 overtime win against the University of Mississippi in Tiger Stadium. After overcoming a 13-point deficit to tie the game late in the fourth quarter, Ole Miss blocked David’s potential game-winning extra point attempt to send the game into overtime. “To be honest, I haven’t had an extra point blocked since early in high school,” David said. “I thought the kick was one of my better kicks. I hit it solid, and everything felt good; it just didn’t follow through.” The Tigers (9-2, 5-2) were given another chance to capture the game after LSU senior defensive back Daniel Francis forced a fumble on the Rebels’ first overtime possession. David said his 26-yard game-winning field goal was a much-needed relief and said he was calm throughout the entire process. “To be honest with you, I had my mind on something else,” David said. “I just tried to imagine everything when they tried to ice me up like I was back on the practice field – just a normal kick and you can’t think of anything else in that situation. I was just thankful for the opportunity because after that missed kick, I would do anything to redeem myself.” Although the game ended in LSU’s favor, the same cannot be said for the remainder of the game, despite the Tigers striking first early in the second quarter. LSU senior wide receiver Dwayne Bowe hauled in a 13- yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback JaMarcus Russell. The 13-yard score marked the 21st time Russell and Bowe have connected for 6 points, moving the duo into a tie with former quarterback Tommy Hodson and former receiver Wendell Davis for the most career touchdowns in school history. Ole Miss responded after junior quarterback Brent Schaeffer and junior running back Bruce Hall connected on a 22-yard score to even the score at 7. Schaeffer completed only 6 of 14 passes for 72 yards and a touchdown. After a personal foul committed by LSU senior defensive end Chase Pittman placed the ball at midfield, the Rebels successfully recovered an on-side kick to begin their drive at the LSU 39-yard line. Another personal foul committed by Pittman and five-consecutive runs by Ole Miss running back BenJarvus Green-Ellis gave the Rebels a 14-7 lead late in the first half. Green-Ellis led all runners with 27 carries for 92 yards on the ground. LSU coach Les Miles said the careless penalties committed by the team are something he will address this week in practice. “I think the untimeliness of the penalties [hurt our team],” Miles said. “There’s going to be some guys whose butts I’m just going to rip if this film shows me anything that resembles a personal foul without intent to play football.” After forcing the Tigers to punt on their next possession and needing only 32 yards for another score, the Rebels could not capitalize as freshman kicker Joshua Shene missed a 37-yard field goal. The beginning of the second half possessed similar results for the Tigers as Rebels freshman wide receiver Marshay Green returned the opening kickoff 62 yards to the LSU 33-yard line. Shene capitalized on the great field position, knocking a 38-yard field goal through the uprights to increase Ole Miss’ lead to, 17-7. Another 45-yard field goal by Shene on the Rebels next possession late in the third quarter put them on top, 20-7. LSU began its comeback with 11:13 second left in the game as Russell hit junior wide receiver Early Doucet on a 4-yard pass to cap off a 59-yard drive and close the gap to 20-14. The Tigers tied the game at 20 with 14 seconds left after Russell and Bowe connected on fourth down and goal at the 5-yard line for their second score of the game, which broke the tie with Hodson and Davis. “JaMarcus told me before the play, ‘Go to the left, and I need a big one out of you,'” Bowe said. “I told him, ‘Just put it in my reach, and I promise I will come through for you.’ As we lined up for the play, we both looked at each other because we knew we could do it.” Bowe, who finished the game with seven catches for 64 yard and two touchdowns, said the record was a great achievement, but his only concern was to finish out the game on top. “It means a lot to me personally, but if we would have lost the game tonight, I would not have cared about the record,” Bowe said. “But I came through in the end. The offensive line did their job in the end, and we were victorious.” The Rebels held LSU to only 75 rushing yards on 27 attempts. LSU senior Justin Vincent led the Tigers with 39 yards rushing on seven attempts. True freshman running back Keiland Williams, who has had a larger role in LSU’s running game the past couple of weeks, did not play because of a “dinged ankle,” Miles said   With LSU’s come-from-behind win, this season’s team became the fourth to go undefeated at home in school history.
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