LSU downs No. 2 Georgia, gives Ed Orgeron signature win

BATON ROUGE, La. -- As a jubilant sort of mayhem engulfed LSU coach Ed Orgeron, with fans rushing onto the field, the Cajun coach who grew up loving the Tigers calmly looked around and let the spectacle sink in. Then he hugged his wife, Kelly.

Joe Burrow passed for 200 yards and had two short touchdown runs, LSU's defense staggered Georgia's normally prolific offense, and the 13th-ranked Tigers beat the No. 2 Bulldogs 36-16 on Saturday to give Orgeron a signature victory.

Five fourth-down decisions by Orgeron influenced the result. LSU converted all four times it ran an offensive play on fourth-and-short, sustaining three drives that produced a total of 13 points.

"We were going to be as aggressive as we can. We were going to take shots and go for it and play to win the game the whole time,'' the burly Orgeron said in his trademark raspy voice. "We were going for it as hard as we can today. We were throwing out the kitchen sink, man. We were giving them everything we had, and we did it.''

In another instance, Orgeron called timeout and elected to punt on fourth-and-2 after the offense initially remained on the field. That decision pinned Georgia at its 4, and Kristian Fulton's interception of Jake Fromm's pass shortly afterward set up another of Cole Tracy's five field goals.

"He knows what he's doing. People just, they hear his accent, and they just think, 'Oh, this guy is just all rah-rah,''' senior tight end Foster Moreau said. "He made all the right decisions tonight.''

Clyde Edwards-Helaire rushed for 133 yards for LSU (6-1, 3-1 Southeastern Conference), and Justin Jefferson caught six passes for 108 yards, including a 41-yard snag of a pass rifled over the middle and between converging defenders. That catch set up Burrow's second TD in the fourth quarter.

Nick Brossette added a short touchdown in the final minutes after Burrow's 59-yard scamper. As the game ended, fans rushed the field, ignoring pleas from the public address announcer not to do so.

Orgeron, now in his second full season after taking over for Les Miles in 2016, largely deflected credited when asked about his role in the upset over Georgia (6-1, 4-1). But his players made it clear how they felt about him.

"The best way we can defend our head coach, who we love, is by winning football games,'' senior tight end Foster Moreau said.

UNSETTLED BULLDOGS

Fromm had by far his worst game this season, completing 16 of 34 passes for 209 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.

He said after the game that LSU's defense presented him with pre-snap formations he had not seen when he studied this season's LSU games.

"They did a good job with some third-down crazy stuff, some one-hit-wonder stuff. But we kind of got ourselves in a mess with the third-and-longs,'' Fromm said. "I don't know. We made some plays. I think they made more plays. We just really couldn't string them all together."

LSU's defense registered three sacks, and the combination of pressure and coverage seemed to get Georgia's offense out of sync, with a number of passes sailing to no one.

"We're just a different group of DBs,'' Fulton said. "That's our game plan, to be physical with them at the line. ... You could tell their timing was off.''

GIVING GROUND

Behind from the beginning, Georgia could not to turn to its running game as much as it might have liked. Averaging about 245 yards per game, the Bulldogs finished with 113 at LSU, led by D'Andre Swift's 72 yards. Elijah Holyfield scored Georgia's first touchdown late in the third quarter.

"We've got to look ourselves in the mirror and say, 'OK, who are we?''' Georgia coach Kirby Smart began. "Because we've consistently not played as physical as we need to on the defensive line and we haven't been as consistent as we need to [be] offensively.''

POLL IMPLICATIONS

Georgia could tumble a number of spots, depending how much voters weigh its relatively unimpressive schedule prior to visiting Death Valley. LSU, which dropped from fifth after losing at Florida a week earlier, could climb back into the top 10 in the AP Top 25 .

THE TAKEAWAY

Georgia: Although Georgia had won all of its previous games by at least two touchdowns, none of its previous opponents was ranked as of this week. The game lived up to its billing as the Bulldogs' toughest test yet, and a Georgia offense that came in averaging 42.8 points looked uncomfortable.

LSU: The Tigers have not lost two straight since Orgeron arrived and now are 7-0 after a loss. By winning its next game, LSU sets up a possible top-10 showdown with current No. 1 Alabama on Nov. 3 for control of the SEC Western Division.

"We're an up-and-coming football team,'' Orgeron said. "Where this takes us, we don't know, but hopefully it gives us some confidence [that] we can play with anybody.''

UP NEXT

Georgia takes next week off before meeting Florida on Oct. 27 in Jacksonville, Florida.

LSU hosts Mississippi State on Saturday.