# 1985 LSU Tigers football team

The 1985 LSU Tigers football team represented Louisiana State University (LSU) as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 1985 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by second-year head coach Bill Arnsparger, the Tigers compiled an overall record of 9–2–1, with a mark of 4–1–1 in conference play, and finished fourth in the SEC.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 14 | 12:00 p.m. | at North Carolina* | No. 12 | Kenan Memorial StadiumChapel Hill, NC | TigerVision | W 23–13 | 50,866 |
| September 21 | 7:00 p.m. | Colorado State* | No. 9 | Tiger StadiumBaton Rouge, LA | TigerVision | W 17–3 | 78,491 |
| October 5 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 11 Florida | No. 8 | Tiger StadiumBaton Rouge, LA (rivalry) | TigerVision | L 0–20 | 78,598 |
| October 12 | 6:00 p.m. | at Vanderbilt | No. 20 | Vanderbilt StadiumNashville, TN | TigerVision | W 49–7 | 40,962 |
| October 19 | 6:30 p.m. | Kentucky | No. 17 | Tiger StadiumBaton Rouge, LA | ESPN | W 10–0 | 78,562 |
| November 2 | 11:30 a.m. | at Ole Miss | No. 16 | Mississippi Veterans Memorial StadiumJackson, MS (rivalry) | TBS | W 14–0 | 45,000 |
| November 9 | 2:50 p.m. | No. 20 Alabama | No. 15 | Tiger StadiumBaton Rouge, LA (rivalry) | ABC | T 14–14 | 76,772 |
| November 16 | 7:00 p.m. | Mississippi State | No. 19 | Tiger StadiumBaton Rouge, LA (rivalry) | TigerVision | W 17–15 | 76,099 |
| November 23 | 11:30 a.m. | at Notre Dame* | No. 17 | Notre Dame StadiumNotre Dame, IN | USA | W 10–7 | 59,075 |
| November 30 | 7:30 p.m. | at Tulane* | No. 13 | Louisiana SuperdomeNew Orleans, LA (Battle for the Rag) | TigerVision | W 31–19 | 64,194 |
| December 7 | 7:00 p.m. | East Carolina* | No. 12 | Tiger StadiumBaton Rouge, LA | TigerVision | W 35–15 | 65,660 |
| December 27 | 7:00 p.m. | vs. Baylor* | No. 12 | Liberty Bowl Memorial StadiumMemphis, TN (Liberty Bowl) | Katz | L 7–21 | 40,186 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Central time |||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | Final |
| AP | 13 | 13 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 20 | 17 | 18 | 15 | 16 | 19 | 17 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 20 |
| Coaches | 11 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 19 | 17 | 18 | 15 | 13 | 18 | 17 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 20 |

## Game summaries
### At North Carolina

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • No. 12 Tigers | 7 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 23 |
| Tar Heels | 7 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
Dalton Hilliard ran for 2 touchdowns and Ron Lewis kicked a school-record 54-yard field goal.

### Alabama

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 20 Crimson Tide | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| No. 15 Tigers | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 14 |

### At Notre Dame

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • No. 17 Tigers | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
| Fighting Irish | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |

### Vs. Baylor (Liberty Bowl)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 12 Tigers | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| • Bears | 7 | 3 | 3 | 8 | 21 |

## 1986 NFL Draft

| Player | Position | Round | Pick | NFL club |
| Garry James | Running back | 2 | 29 | Detroit Lions |
| Dalton Hilliard | Running back | 2 | 31 | New Orleans Saints |
| Jeff Wickersham | Quarterback | 10 | 274 | Miami Dolphins |