Max Johnson passed for 280 yards and 4 touchdowns, as LSU earned a 28-25 victory over Mississippi State in the SEC opener on Saturday at Davis Wade Stadium.
Johnson, a sophomore, became the first Tiger since Rohan Davey in 1999 to throw 3 TD passes of 40-plus yards in a single game. He finished 17-of-27 passing with touchdowns of 11 and 64 yards to wide receiver Kayshon Boutte, 58 to wide receiver Trey Palmer and 41 to tight end Kole Taylor that put his Tigers ahead 28-10 with 11:32 to play.
Meanwhile, LSU’s defense executed its dime package and kept the ball in front of itself for a vast majority of the contest. The Tigers “bend don’t break” exercise resulted in a pair of first-quarter turnovers forced by nickelback Cordale Flott on the LSU side of the field and later a three-score lead in the fourth quarter when State rallied for a pair of touchdowns to make the game interesting.
LSU head football coach Ed Orgeron, along with several Tiger players, talked about the win after the game. Video is courtesy of the SEC.