The notes LSU football junior center Lloyd Cushenberry III posted on the lockers of the Tigers’ linemen will come down either on Sunday or Monday. 

Three statistics are listed — eight quarterback pressures, five sacks and 11 tackles for loss. The stats are from last year’s Florida game, a 27-19 loss for the Tigers. A game in which the Tigers looked to be on their way to victory, but a sack fumble in the first quarter by Florida swung the momentum in the Gators’ favor.

They may feel heavier than average paper scraps. They bear the weight of a painful defeat, and as they come down, so will the pressure of avenging a woeful performance. 

The offensive line earned the privilege of taking down those notes following LSU’s 42-28 win over Florida Saturday night.

After the game, LSU coach Ed Orgeron pegged zero sacks as “the biggest stat of the night.” 

Florida entered the evening with 26 sacks and 50 tackles for loss, both top-five in the nation. Seven players had at least two sacks, including outside linebacker Jonathan Greenard, whose 6.5 tackles for loss and four sacks rank second in the SEC. 

And yet, LSU’s offensive line neutralized Florida’s pass rush. 

In the comforts of a clean pocket for most of the game, senior quarterback Joe Burrow carved up the vaunted Gators’ secondary, completing 21-of-24 passes for 293 yards and three touchdowns. 

The Tigers racked up 218 yards rushing, highlighted by the long touchdown runs of junior running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire and freshman running back Tyrion Davis-Price. 

The offense passed a mid-season test against Florida’s defense, raising an interesting chicken-or-egg quandary. Did the spread offense, complete with quick passes from multiple-receiver sets help the offensive line withstand the pressure, or did the strength of the offensive line allow Burrow to complete those passes? 

Everyone around the team sung the praises of the line after the game.

“That’s about as flawless as an offensive line has ever played that I’ve ever seen,” Burrow said. 

Passing game coordinator Joe Brady hypothesized over the summer that his offense intrinsically yields fewer sacks. Burrow has only been sacked 13 times this season. 

Pose the question to Cushenberry, and he will play the role of a leader, ensuring everyone receives credit for a victory a year in the making.

Does a spread offense reduce sacks? 

“I think so,” Cushenberry said. “But at the end of the day, you know, it starts with the five up front. We protect, we’ve got to do our job every snap.”