Video: Rueben Randle Interview
Rueben Randle needed a pick-me-up at halftime.
The sophomore receiver had a crucial drop on No. 5 LSU’s final drive of the first half that would have put the Tigers in position to get into field goal range.
Instead, the Tigers were forced to punt and went into halftime trailing No. 12 Alabama, 7-3.
“I said [to Randle], ‘Man, I have faith in you. Just keep your head up,'” said senior wide receiver Terrence Toliver. “I know how it feels, and he came right back and stepped it up.”
“Stepped it up” is an understatement.
The Bastrop native — who wrapped up the first half of play with no receptions — snagged three balls for 125 yards, a touchdown and a two-point conversion in the second half.
“[My teammates] just told me to keep my head up,” Randle said. “I just needed to get out there and make the next one. That was my whole key point for the rest of the game.”
With 8:28 remaining in the third quarter, Randle lined up in the slot position and ran a deep drag route. Freshman wide receiver James Wright was split out wide and ran a straight go route down the sideline while sophomore wide receiver Russell Shepard lined up on the inside and ran a bubble route.
The linebackers jumped the bubble route and Alabama junior safety Mark Barron bit just a bit too hard on Wright, leaving Randle a wide-open seam across the middle of the field.
Randle snagged the pass from junior quarterback Jordan Jefferson at the LSU 45-yard line and scampered untouched into the end zone for a 75-yard touchdown reception that gave LSU a 10-7 lead.
The play was a shining moment for the LSU offense, which had struggled most of the day. It also had Jefferson visibly fired up.
“That was probably the most emotional I’ve been all season because of it being a great play and a great call,” Jefferson said. “It was just Alabama week, and the game was very emotional for me and the rest of the team.”
The Tigers worked hard on executing big plays and giving the passing game some quick strike potential during the bye week before facing the Crimson Tide.
“With the open week, we took some time to do some things that we needed to do and redo,” said LSU coach Les Miles. “There were things that have been there all year, but we needed to execute better and continue to press in the same direction. I think our football team recognizes when we practice that we can throw the football.”
While the touchdown pass made all the television highlight reels, Randle’s most important catch may have come a bit later in the game.
LSU faced a third-and-13 situation on its own 20-yard line when junior quarterback Jarrett Lee connected with Randle down the sideline for 47 yards, ironically enough, on the exact same play Randle dropped in the first half.
“It was [the same play]. It was just a different defense,” Randle said. “I missed the first one, and it was a Cover-3 defense, so I had to go inside a little bit. But the second one was a Cover-2, so I just had a go route down the sidelines.”
The catch gave the Tigers enough cushion to run the ball comfortably and milk much of the clock and force Alabama to take over possession at its own 14-yard line with just 18 seconds left to play.
“We threw it at [Randle] just once in the first half,” Lee said. “And after halftime we made some adjustments, and I knew he was going to be there, so we just had to get it in his hands.”
 
 
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Contact Rob Landry at [email protected]