In just a matter of minutes, Matt Mauck turned from the goat to the hero. For Skyler Green, it was more of a game long transition. And because of their efforts, along with the rest of the Tigers, they walked out of Tiger Stadium on Saturday afternoon with smiles on their faces.
Just minutes after his fourth quarter fumble – which eventually led to Georgia tying the game 10-10 – Mauck launched a bomb off his back foot to Green for a 34-yard touchdown pass with 1:22 left in the game, leading the No. 10 Tigers a dramatic 17-10 Southeastern Conference win over No. 7 Georgia before 92,251 fans, the largest crowd in Tiger Stadium history.
“Well you know, I really can’t say enough about both football teams in the way they competed,” LSU coach Nick Saban said after the game. “You talk about a heavy weight fight, a street fight. Both sides competed their hearts out. It was about as physical a football game as I’ve seen in a long time. I’m proud of the way our players competed in the game.”
The win marked LSU’s first victory against a Top 10 team since 2001 when the Tigers beat Tennessee in the SEC championship game.
Regardless of the game’s outcome, Saban said team’s grit would be tested and their response was what he was looking for in a game that attracted ESPN GameDay and a CBS national television audience.
“I told the players I had six big oak trees blow down like sailboats in my yard last year in the hurricane,” Saban said. “But the root system on those things was only about as big as the podium here. That’s why they blew down – because their roots weren’t very deep. I said you’re going to find out today how deep your roots are when you go out there and have to compete and overcome some of the things that happen in this game. If we’ve got deep roots, we’ll still be standing up like some of the pretty trees around here, and I’m proud of the way we did that.”
LSU trailed 3-0 in the first quarter but scored 10 unanswered points and led the Bulldogs 10-3 going into the fourth quarter.
Looking to put the game away with less than five minutes remaining, the Tigers drove to the UGA 15-yard line before the Bulldogs’ Odell Thurman recovered Mauck’s fumble.
On Georgia’s next possession, Bulldogs quarterback David Greene found Tyson Browning in the flat and he dashed 93 yards untouched to tie the game 10-10 with a touchdown that seemed to bring the Bulldogs back to life.
“If you knew Matt Mauck very well, you know that there’s nobody that feels worse than he did,” Saban said. “The guy’s a great competitor. He’s done a lot for this program. Nobody really knows how hard he’s worked to get back where he is. He did it because he wants to play and do well.”
The Tigers answered back on the ensuing kickoff. Devery Henderson broke off a 48-yard kickoff return and Mauck returned to the field with the LSU offense looking to get the momentum back on the Tigers’ side.
“I was just hoping I would get another opportunity because I wanted to help the team out,” Mauck said. “I felt horrible seeing that guy [Browning] run down the sidelines, so I just wanted another chance to make a play.”
Mauck got his chance and made the most of it. On a botched play designed for Green to set a pick to free receiver Michael Clayton in the flat, Green ran a post route instead and seperated himself from the UGA defender. Mauck said he saw Green out of the corner of his eye and threw the ball off his back foot while taking a bone-crushing hit.
“Skyler ran past him, and I saw him in the corner of my eye, threw it up and he made a great play,” said Mauck, who finished 14-of-29 for 180 yards.
Added Saban: “When [the ball] was in the air, I kept looking, looking and looking, and I knew how fast my man Skyler was. I didn’t know if he would run it down or not. And it was a tough angle. I was just happy I didn’t have to decide whether or not we would have to kick a field goal or what to do on the next down.”
Green, who had at least three dropped passes in the first half, came on strong as the game went on. His 31-yard catch in the second quarter helped set up LSU’s first touchdown – a 21-yard run from Shyrone Carey. Green led all LSU receivers with four catches for 78 yards.
“I had to overcome a lot of adversity in the beginning,” Green said. “I had to let my mistakes go behind me and step up and make plays.”
After they fell behind 17-10, the Bulldogs had one last chance to come back but Corey Webster’s interception of UGA quarterback David Greene ended all hopes of a Georgia rally.
After the game, Saban also praised the LSU defense for containing the high-octane Georgia offense. The Bulldogs did muster 411 yards of offense to LSU’s 285, but through tipped passes, missed field goals, fumbles and interceptions, the Tigers defense was able to hold the Bulldogs to three points for most of the game.
Greene finished 20-of-44 for 314 yards and two interceptions and a key fumble that killed a Georgia scoring drive in the first quarter.
“After the first quarter, we got on the sidelines and said we have to make a stand right here,” said linebacker Lionel Turner, who had an interception to go with six tackles. “And that’s what we did. My hat’s off to the D-Line. They played extremely well. They put pressure on the quarterback. My hat’s off to the defensive backs too. The whole defense did a great job.”