2007 LSU Tigers football team The 2007 LSU Tigers football team represented Louisiana State University during the college football season of 2007 – 2008 , winning the Southeastern Conference championship and the national championship . The team ' s Head Coach was Les Miles who entered his third year at the helm of LSU Football . They were led on the field by senior quarterback Matt Flynn and senior defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey , a two - time All - American and winner of the multiple national trophies or awards . They played their home games at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge , Louisiana . The team overcame two triple - overtime losses and four other close games to become the first two - time Bowl Championship Series ( BCS ) champion ever . On their way to the BCS championship , the Tigers won their tenth Southeastern Conference championship by defeating Tennessee in the 2007 SEC Championship Game . The Tigers finished the season having earned the Southeastern Conference championship trophy , the Grantland Rice Award , the MacArthur Trophy , the Associated Press Trophy and the AFCA National Championship Trophy . In a salute to the championship team during his January 14 , 2008 inauguration speech , Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal stated in part " . . . They revere our athletes . Go Tigers . . . " Previous season . In his second season as head coach , Les Miles had another terrific year leading the Tigers to back - to - back 11 win seasons . The Tigers finished 2006 with a record of 11 – 2 ( 6 – 2 SEC ) and were invited to the 2007 Allstate Sugar Bowl to play Notre Dame . The Tigers went on defeat Notre Dame 41 – 14 to cap a 7 game win streak to end the season . The Tigers headed into the off - season with higher hopes for the 2007 Season . Pre - season . LSU was ranked No . 2 in the preseason USA Today Coaches Poll and the preseason AP Poll . In the pre - season , returning quarterback Matt Flynn was named one of the top - 10 impact seniors for 2007 . Senior tailback Alley Broussard left the team on July 24 to concentrate on academics . Broussard had started eight games , but was not expected to start in 2007 . 2007 recruiting class . LSU signed a total of 26 players for the 2007 recruiting class . The 2007 class was a solid recruiting class for Les Miles and the LSU Football program . The class was headlined by safety Chad Jones , wide receivers Demetrius Byrd and Terrance Tolliver , quarterback Jarrett Lee , and defensive tackle Joseph Barksdale . LSU did miss out on signing Joe McKnight , the top recruit out of Louisiana who decided to commit to USC instead . Overall the 2007 LSU recruiting class was ranked No . 4 by rivals . com and No . 5 by scout . com . Schedule . The schedule was ranked as the No . 3 toughest home schedule . Schedule Source : 2007 LSU Football Schedule @ LSUSports . net Game notes . Mississippi State . LSU and Mississippi State kicked off the 2007 college football season in a Thursday night SEC contest broadcast live on ESPN . Through much of the first half it appeared as though Mississippi State was up to the daunting task of challenging the Tigers , then the # 2 - ranked team in the country behind only USC , as MSU clung to a 3 – 0 deficit until the end of the second quarter , when LSU scored 14 points in the last six minutes of the first half , opening the door for the Tigers to cruise to the final 45 – 0 margin . LSU K Colt David warmed up the scoreboard for the Tigers ' offense with a 27 - yard field goal with 6 : 28 remaining in the first quarter . Tigers ' RB Keiland Williams would score twice in the second quarter on one - yard runs with 5 : 52 , then 0 : 00 on the clock to push LSU ' s lead to 17 – 0 at the half . In the third quarter , the Tigers ' distanced themselves with two eleven - yard touchdown passes from QB Matt Flynn to WR Early Doucet ( 12 : 53 ) and RB Charles Scott ( 2 : 09 ) , bringing the score to 31 – 0 to start the fourth quarter . LSU backup QB Ryan Perriloux sealed the Tigers ' victory in the fourth quarter with a three - yard touchdown scramble ( 8 : 20 ) , followed by a 15 - yard touchdown pass to WR Brandon LaFell ( 5 : 45 ) . LSU ' s dominance included earning 22 first downs to MSU ' s 9 and yielding MSU just ten rushing yards on 26 carries . LSU FB Jacob Hester led the Tigers with 14 carries for 72 yards ( 4 . 9 yards per carry ) , while Early Doucet paced LSU ' s passing attack with 9 catches for 78 yards , including the 11 - yard touchdown strike he caught in the third quarter ; he was the only LSU receiver to catch more than one pass . For MSU , RB Anthony Dixon led the Bulldogs on the ground with just 29 yards on 13 carries ( 2 . 2 average ) . RB Arnil Stallworth led MSU with only 3 pass receptions for 33 yards . LSU starting QB Matt Flynn paced his team ' s offense by completing 12 of 19 passes for 128 yards and two touchdowns and rushing 11 times for 42 yards . Ryan Perriloux ran the Tigers ' offense well in relief duty , completing 2 of 3 passes for 21 yards and a touchdown and running 3 times for 12 yards and another score . For MSU , QB Michael Henig completed just 11 of 28 passes on his way to a school record - tying six interception - performance . He was sacked three times for a cumulative loss of 30 yards . Defensively , LSU LB Ali Highsmith led the Tigers with eight total tackles . Tigers ' S Craig Steltz returned three of MSU ' s six interceptions a total of 100 yards . MSU LB Dominic Douglas led all tacklers with nine total , in his first career game with the Bulldogs . Virginia Tech . The ESPN " College GameDay " crew was in Baton Rouge , LA for this important non - conference matchup between two top - 10 teams . LSU entered the game ranked No . 2 while Virginia Tech was ranked # 9 . With both teams having excellent defenses the game was expected to be a low scoring affair . LSU , however , on their first possession drove the ball 80 + yards for a touchdown . The next time they got the ball they did the same thing . LSU continued to shock the Virginia Tech defense all night as it racked up 48 points to eventually win the game 48 – 7 . Middle Tennessee State . Second ranked LSU played Middle Tennessee State in front of a sold out crowd in Tiger Stadium . Head coach Les Miles didn ' t play starting QB Matt Flynn because of an ankle injury he suffered during the week , and to rest him for next weeks game at home against the South Carolina Gamecocks . Instead he started Sophomore Ryan Perrilloux who threw 20 – 26 passing for 298 passing yards to help lead LSU to a 44 – 0 win against MTSU . Senior WR Early Doucet didn ' t play to rest for next weeks game as well . LSU held Middle Tennessee to a total of 90 yards on offense . LSU only allowed 9 yards rushing in the game against the same MTSU team that put up 264 yards of total rushing against Louisville the week before . LSU won the game 44 – 0 . South Carolina . < nowiki > # < / nowiki > 14 South Carolina , coached by Steve Spurrier , came into Tiger Stadium on a rainy Saturday afternoon . The game , broadcast nationally by CBS , was messy due to the wet conditions , and South Carolina took an early 7 – 0 lead . LSU responded by scoring two unanswered touchdowns to make it 14 – 7 . LSU again drove down into South Carolina territory but the drive stalled and the Tigers lined up to kick a field goal . The kick was a fake , perfectly executed by QB Matt Flynn and K Colt David , which saw David take an over - the - head no look toss from Flynn into the end zone for a touchdown . The play would go on to be selected as the ESPN / Pontiac Game Changing Performance for week 4 of the 2007 season . South Carolina would score again late in the fourth quarter but it wasn ' t enough and the Tigers won the game 28 – 16 . Tulane . LSU played Tulane in a recently renewed rivalry that stretches all the way back to LSU ' s first football game in 1893 . Even though the game was played at the Louisiana Superdome , Tulane ' s home stadium , it was a virtual home game for LSU considering it is only approximately away from Baton Rouge . The Tigers started out slow and Tulane took a 9 – 7 lead late in the first half . LSU would score a field goal to go into halftime with a 10 – 9 lead . The second half saw the Tigers pull away from the Green Wave and LSU won the game 34 – 9 . LSU and Tulane both wore special uniforms designed by Nike to honor Hurricane Katrina victims . The new designs will be sold at stores throughout the city and proceeds will benefit Nike ’ s Let Me Play New Orleans fund to help rebuild New Orleans through Sport . LSU ' s uniforms consisted of white pants and a purple jersey and a white helmet . This is only the second time in history that LSU has worn a white helmet . The other time came in the 1997 Independence Bowl against Notre Dame . The LSU victory , along with Southern California ' s close game with Washington , pushed LSU to the No . 1 ranking in the AP Poll , with 1 , 593 points and 33 first - place votes just over Southern California ' s 1 , 591 points and 32 first - place votes ; however the Trojans remained No . 1 in the Coaches Poll , keeping a more substantial lead : 1 , 483 points and 45 first - place votes to LSU ' s 1 , 454 points and 14 first - place votes . Florida . In the pre - season , this game was named as one of candidates for the 10 most important games of 2007 , with the 2006 contest having made a significant impact on determining the national championship ( Florida finished # 1 , LSU # 3 ) ; it would also serve as the first true road test for Gator ' s starting quarterback Tim Tebow . In preparation for the matchup , CBS staged The Early Show from the LSU campus on the Friday morning before the game . ESPN also chose LSU as the site for College GameDay . It was the second time in the 2007 season that ESPN College GameDay was broadcast from LSU . The Gators took an early lead by kicking a field goal on their first drive . Two drives later , the Gators mounted a 12 - play drive that culminated in a Tim Tebow two - yard pass to Kestahn Moore to put the Gators up by ten . LSU immediately countered with a long drive of their own , going 80 yards in 16 plays , scoring on a Ryan Perrilloux option play to cut the Gator lead to 10 – 7 . The Gators marched down the field again and scored on a Tebow run to put their lead back at 10 with 2 : 23 to play in the first half . LSU moved the ball right before the half , but kicker Colt David missed a 43 - yard field goal . In the second half , LSU took the ensuing drive but were stopped by the Gator defense . Appearing to kick another long field goal , LSU instead ran a brilliant fake with the holder — quarterback Matt Flynn — who scooted eight yards for the first down . The Tigers scored on a Keiland Williams run shortly thereafter . The Gators answered the LSU drive with a quick 3 - play drive to score on a 37 - yard Tebow pass to Cornelius Ingram . Craig Steltz missed an assignment on the play which left Ingram wide open on the post pattern . Florida started the fourth quarter with a 24 – 14 lead . However , the Tigers were not to be denied . After missing another relatively short field goal , LSU took advantage of an errant pass by Tim Tebow which hit Ingram in the helmet . The Tigers drove down the field , and Flynn hit Demetrius Byrd for a 3 yard touchdown to cut the Gator lead to 3 . On the final LSU drive , the Tigers converted several fourth down plays , including one by Jacob Hester where he made a great second effort to surge ahead to just get the first down . Hester scored a short touchdown with 1 : 06 to play in the game , giving the Tigers a 28 – 24 lead . On the final drive , Florida gained 30 yards , but a Hail Mary pass as time expired was batted down by Chad Jones , sealing the LSU victory . Much of the hype during game week concerned the fate of starting safety and captain , Tony Joiner , who was arrested earlier in the week for what was later termed a " misunderstanding . " The owner of the towing company where Joiner was arrested was quoted as having received over 200 calls from Florida fans , several of them death threats to him and his family . Joiner played but did not start the game . Kentucky . After suffering their first loss of the season to No . 17 Kentucky , LSU fell to No . 5 in the polls . LSU blew a 13 point lead in the 3rd quarter . Auburn . One week after their brutal triple overtime loss to Kentucky , LSU returned home for another tough matchup : number 17 Auburn . Auburn jumped out to an early 7 – 0 lead when Brandon Cox found Montez Billings . A 46 yard screen pass to Keiland Williams for a TD tied it , but Auburn took a 17 – 7 lead into halftime when LSU backup quarterback Ryan Perrilloux fumbled , and Carl Stewart ran for a one yard touchdown after LSU ' s Trindon Holliday had saved a touchdown . Wes Bynum ' s field goal capped the first half scoring . Two Colt David field goals pulled LSU within four before Matt Flynn hit Jacob Hester on a five yard screen and David kicked another field goal to put LSU on top 23 – 17 . But , Auburn wasn ' t done , as they drove down the field and scored a touchdown . LSU had 3 : 13 left , and they put themselves in good position to kick a game winning field goal on Auburn ' s 22 yard line . However , with a chance to make the kick and a timeout , LSU coach Les Miles chose to gamble ( as he has so often during the year ) and go for a touchdown . It turned out as he planned however , as LSU won on Matt Flynn ' s 22 yard pass to Demetrius Byrd . Miles later said he thought he had plenty of time , and reviews of the play verified that the pass was caught with 4 seconds remaining , but the clock ran until the referee signaled TD with 1 second remaining . Under NCAA rules , the clock keeper allows the clock to run when a reception is made in the endzone until a signal is given by the endzone referee . Had the ball been incomplete , the clock keeper would have stopped the clock immediately upon the ball hitting the ground . This likely would have left LSU with 3 – 4 seconds on the clock and a chance to run another play . Ignorance of this rule is often a factor in criticisms of this play call . Alabama . In the game dubbed " Saban Bowl I " , in which Nick Saban ' s new Alabama team faced an LSU team that feature several players Saban himself had recruited during his tenure in Baton Rouge , the Tide found itself in an SEC shootout . Alabama struck first with an early Leigh Tiffin field goal . However , the Tigers then scored 17 unanswered points , and it appeared that the game could have been a blowout . Unfortunately for LSU though , Bama wasn ' t finished yet . They scored 17 points in the second quarter , and the Crimson Tide led 20 – 17 at halftime . The third quarter saw no scoring until the last two minutes . With 1 : 19 left , Keith Brown caught a 14 - yard touchdown pass to make the score 27 – 17 . The Tigers quickly responded on their next drive when Matt Flynn threw a 61 - yard touchdown pass to Demetrius Byrd to bring the Tiger back to within 3 points of Bama . Then , with 11 : 21 left in the game , Colt David kicked a 49 - yard field goal to tie it up 27 – 27 . The Tide took the lead again when Javier Arenas returned a punt for a 61 - yard touchdown . With 2 : 49 left , LSU was able to tie the game again . It appeared the game might go into overtime until John Parker Wilson was hit in the backfield by Safety Chad Jones and fumbled the ball and LSU recovered on the Tide ' s 4 - yard line . They then ran it in for a touchdown and won when Alabama was unable to respond . The Tigers had 475 total yards compared to Alabama ' s 254 . Alabama was able to stay in the game thanks to 3 interceptions the defense was able to force and 130 yards in penalties that LSU accumulated . John Parker Wilson was 14 for 40 with 234 yards , 3 touchdowns , and an interception . Arkansas . After coming off of a win against Ole ' Miss , the once again No . 1 ranked LSU Tigers lost again in a triple overtime battle against the Arkansas Razorbacks . The loss dropped them back to No . 7 and the loss also jeopardized their chances of getting into the BCS National Championship . SEC Championship Game : Tennessee . Tennessee and LSU faced off in the SEC Championship Game . They last met in the SECCG in 2001 . LSU won that game over the favored Volunteers , eliminating them from a trip to the Rose Bowl for the National Championship . LSU last played in the SECCG in 2005 , losing to Georgia . Tennessee last played in the SECCG in 2004 , losing to Auburn . Matt Flynn was sidelined by injury , and the Tennessee defense delivered its best performance of the year , holding the Ryan Perrilloux - led Tigers to a season low 21 points . However , the LSU defense intercepted two passes from Tennessee quarterback Erik Ainge , including one late in the fourth quarter to secure the win . In the wake of this victory , LSU jumped from 7th to 2nd in the BCS standings and became the first two - loss team to play in the BCS National Championship Game . 2008 Allstate BCS National Championship Game . After coming out of a two loss season with a win in the SEC championship game , the LSU Tigers took on the top ranked Ohio State Buckeyes and defeated them 38 – 24 . This win made the LSU Tigers the first team to win two BCS National Championships . White House visit . On April 7 , 2008 , the 2007 LSU Tigers football team traveled to the White House in Washington , D . C . to meet U . S . President George W . Bush . Roster . Roster Source : http : / / www . lsusports . net / SportSelect . dbml ? SPSID = 27812 & SPID = 2164 & DB _ OEM _ ID = 5200 & SORT _ ORDER = 6 & Q _ SEASON = 2007