LSU’s tendency to produce nail-biting finishes during the 2007 football season could pay off – quite literally – for the Tigers.
Three LSU plays are nominated for the Pontiac Game Changing Performance of the Year award worth $100,000. The winning university must allocate the money to its general scholarship fund.
LSU is the only team with multiple plays to make the 13-play final ballot.
The first play on the ballot is LSU’s fake field goal for a touchdown against South Carolina when senior quarterback Matt Flynn flipped the football over his shoulder to junior kicker Colt David. The play gave LSU a two-touchdown advantage before the half.
LSU’s second nomination is Flynn’s touchdown pass to junior receiver Demetrius Byrd for the 30-24 win over Auburn with :01 remaining on the clock. The Tigers’ defensive effort against Alabama is honored with the third play nomination. Freshman safety Chad Jones sacked Alabama quarterback John Parker Wilson and forced a fumble that junior safety Curtis Taylor recovered to set up LSU’s game-winning touchdown.
English junior Brad Fears did not hesitate when asked to name LSU’s three nominated plays. He joked that he spent a bit too much time during the fall semester studying football rather than class notes.
“I would vote for the Auburn play,” Fears said. “There was only about one second to go, and that’s such a clutch play.”
Fears said the play solidified Byrd as the Tigers’ go-to receiver.
“He is our best receiver because he’s very consistent and reliable,” Fears said.
Chemical engineering sophomore Jon Kehrer said he would vote for the fake field goal against South Carolina.
“I would definitely vote for ‘the flip’ play,” Kehrer said. “That was just insane that Colt David could run that fast.”
Kehrer acknowledged the Auburn play’s thrilling nature but said the play was not necessarily “game changing” since the Tigers were down 24-23 and needed just a field goal to win.
“There was no reason to even score that touchdown,” he said.
If the Tigers win the award, they will be the third Southeastern Conference team to win since the contest was introduced in 2004. Alabama won in 2005 with “The Catch,” an improbable play when Tyrone Prothro caught Brodie Croyle’s pass by wrapping his arms around the defender and pinning the ball against his back.
Auburn earned the honor in 2006 when Tre Smith returned a blocked punt to give Auburn the lead in the Tigers’ win against then-No. 2 Florida.
The 2007 season produced many game-changing performances sure to provide formidable competition for the Tigers. One fan-favorite play features Trinity’s multiple laterals to score a game-winning touchdown against Millsaps. Arkansas and Kentucky are also nominated for their plays to defeat LSU in triple overtime.
Jackie Kim, spokeswoman for Pontiac Game Changing Performance of the Year, said fans can log on to espn.com to vote once for their favorite play during each voting cycle.
The three plays with the least votes will be eliminated Thursday when the pool is narrowed to 10. The ballot will be narrowed to the top seven plays on Dec. 13 and the top four plays on Dec. 20. Voting ends Jan. 3, and the winner will be announced Jan. 7 on Fox’s broadcast of the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game.
—-Contact Amy Brittain at [email protected]