NEW ORLEANS – The effect of LSU’s national title stretched far past the Bourbon Street parties and Baton Rouge bar celebrations.
The Tigers’ 21-14 win over Oklahoma in the Nokia Sugar Bowl ended the team’s 45-year title drought, but only sparked further national debate on the legitimacy of the 2003 college football season and its champion.
LSU finished No. 1 in the final coaches poll. USC took the top spot in the final Associated Press poll after beating Michigan 28-14 in the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day.
The Tigers (13-1) last won the title in 1958 with an 11-0 season that ended with a 7-0 win over Clemson in the 1959 Sugar Bowl.
After the game, many LSU players said they had no doubt who the real champion was.
“All the talk is done, everybody knows we are No. 1 in the BCS no matter what people said on TV after the Rose Bowl,” said LSU cornerback Corey Webster.
Defensive end Marcus Spears, who finished the game with an interception for a touchdown and a sack, said it was LSU’s destiny to win the title.
“I do feel like it was destiny because all season we heard about USC and Oklahoma being in the national championship,” Spears said. “When we got the bid and found out, we were like let’s just go win this thing. Even with everything and the atmosphere surrounding it, we knew it would be won on the field.”
The party began for LSU after the Sooners (12-2) failed to field Donnie Jones’ punt as time expired.
“It finally happened,” said LSU wide receiver Michael Clayton, who finished with four catches for 38 yards. “It was a long journey here. It wasn’t something that happened in one season. It was things that happened over the course of the three seasons I’ve been here. We took every issue we went through as a stepping stone.”
LSU coach Nick Saban, normally a stoic figure who often stresses focus on the next game, said even he can enjoy the thrill of a national title.
“I’m happy for everybody else,” Saban said. “What makes me happy about doing something like this, is that it’s made so many people happy and just like winning the SEC Championship, when you look in somebody’s eyes and see the pride that they have in what you’ve accomplished, that’s the real self gratification. I’m going to be proud for a long time about this.”
Saban said after the game, his thoughts quickly turned to the team’s chances of a repeat, but he wants the players to savor the moment.
“To see the players’ hard work, resiliency, character and how they connected, to see them as happy as they are, and have a life-long accomplishment and a lot of lessons to be learned from this competitive season, those kinds of things mean more to me than [anything else.]”
The Tigers’ defense continued their regular-season dominance against Oklahoma, allowing only 154 yards of total offense to one of the nation’s top offensive units.
OU Heisman quarterback Jason White was limited to 102 yards passing on 13-of-37 passing. White also threw two interceptions and was sacked five times.
LSU quarterback Matt Mauck finished 13-of-22 for 124 yards and two interceptions.
Freshman running back Justin Vincent rushed for 117 yards on 16 carries to earn the game’s Most Outstanding Player honors. Vincent started the Tigers’ first possession with a 64-yard run on the opening play, but on first and goal from the two, Mauck fumbled the snap and Sooners cornerback Derrick Strait recovered it.
On OU’s first play, White threw long but the ball was tipped and Webster came away with an interception. The Tigers capitalized four plays later when Skyler Green put LSU on top 7-0 with a 24-yard touchdown run.
Oklahoma answered in the second quarter when Brandon Shelby blocked a Donnie Jones punt and Russe Dennison recovered it at the 2. Kejuan Jones then tied the game on a 1-yard plunge on third and goal.
LSU responded with a nine-play, 80-yard drive that Vincent capped with an 18-yard TD run that gave LSU a 14-7 halftime lead.
Spears’ interception came on White’s first pass of the half, taking it into the end zone from 20 yards out to ignite the crowd. Spears said when he saw the ball, his eyes got big.
“They got real big,” he said. “I was just dropping back, something that we’ve done all season. I put my hands up, the ball kind of fell in there and I just took it to the house.”
With the Sooners trailing 21-7 after three quarters, it appeared LSU had the title wrapped up, facing a first and goal from the Sooners’ five. But dual penalties on a Ryan Gaudet field goal cost the Tigers 30 yards of field position and three points. Blain Bech connected on a fake field goal pass to tight end David Jones on fourth down, but he was tackled at the 6 to end the drive.
“That may be the first time in the history of ball, any ball, where that’s happened,” Saban said. “I don’t complain about officiating, but that was a pretty significant change of events because it puts us up three scores at 24-7.”
The Tigers were driving again at the beginning of the fourth quarter, but on third and six from the OU 31, Oklahoma’s Brodney Pool intercepted Mauck and returned it 49 yards to set up Jones’ second touchdown run.
The Sooners could not muster much offense the rest of the way, failing to convert on fourth downs in LSU territory in the fourth quarter and twice misfiring on crucial drives. White’s last nine passes were incomplete.
Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said the Tigers’ defense executed better, and LSU’s unit was the best he has faced all year.
“In the end, we were not quite good enough to get it done and LSU made the plays in the end and that made the difference to win,” Stoops said.