BATON ROUGE, La. — Two touchdowns in the final 9:10 made the difference in a win and loss for the No. 8 LSU Tigers, who rallied to defeat the Ole Miss Rebels 41-35 Saturday night at Tiger Stadium.
Ole Miss battled like it has in so many games this season but in the end, the Tigers proved to be the better team in the end of this Southeastern Conference Western Division battle. Below is a scoring summary from the contest as well as a video of Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze after the contest.
FIRST QUARTER
Ole Miss gets on the scoreboard first with a 58-yard rush by Bo Wallace, who made a great read on the option. The drive lasted six plays and covered 82 yards. Ole Miss 7, LSU 0. 10:16.
The Tigers didn’t led the Rebels feel good too long as they answer with a two-play, 75-yard scoring drive capped by a 27-yard TD run by Jeremy Hill. The run was set up by a 48-yard pass from Zach Mettenberger. Tied 7-7. 9:55.
The big plays continued for the Rebels as Wallace hits Donte Moncrief for a 56-yard touchdown pass across the middle of the field. The play capped a four-play, 70-yard drive. Ole Miss 14, LSU 7. 5:15 left.
The first quarter came to an end with LSU at the Rebels’ 5 following a fumbled punt by Ole Miss’ Korvic Neat.
SECOND QUARTER
Ole Miss survived a third-and-goal throw from Mettenberger to force a 22-yard field goal Drew Alleman. Ole Miss 14, LSU 10. 14:50.
The Tigers took their first lead of the game on a 1-yard dive by Spencer Ware. The short run and 36-yard drive was set up by an interception by Wallace. LSU 17, Ole Miss 14, 9:57.
Ole Miss regained the lead thanks to a 1-yard run by Walllace. The drive lasted 11 plays and covered 97 yards and included a 20-yard completion to Ja-Mes Logan on a fourth-and-three at the LSU 47. Ole Miss 21, LSU 17. 50 seconds.
Ole Miss finished the first half with 286 yards on offense. LSU had 174 with just 67 yards coming on the ground. Ole Miss will get the ball first to start the third quarter.
THIRD QUARTER
LSU ate into the Rebels’ lead early thanks to an interception by Tharold Simon on Ole Miss’ opening drive and a 24-yard field goal by Alleman. Ole Miss 21, LSU 20. 11:42.
Ole Miss overcame two interceptions by Wallace in the third to take an eight-point lead heading into the final quarter. Randall Mackey scored on a 6-yard run to put the Rebels ahead 28-20 with 50 seconds left. Ole Miss 28, LSU 20.
FOURTH QUARTER
LSU tied the game with a 1-yard run from Hill. The score was set up by a 22-yard pass from Mettenberger to Kadron Boone. Mettenberger then tied the contest with a 2-point throw to Spencer Ware. Tied 28-28. 11:39 left.
Ole Miss roars right back with a 65-yard scoring drive that is capped by a 30-yard completion from Wallace to Moncrief. Rebels 35, LSU 28. 11:11.
LSU was able to tie the game with just over nine minutes left on an amazing 89-yard punt return by Odell Beckham Jr. The score tied the game at 35.
LSU ended up winning the contest on the final drive of the game. LSU gained possession at the Ole Miss 36 following a missed field goal by Bryson Rose. Nine plays later, Hill scored his third touchdown of the game on a 1-yard run with 15 seconds left in the contest.
Ole Miss outgained the Tigers 463-427. Wallace finished the game 15-for-35 for 310 yards, three interceptions and two touchdowns. He was sacked three times. Mettenberger was 22-for-37 for 282 yards and two interceptions. Hill led all rushers with 20 carries for 77 yards. Wallace ended up leading the Rebels on the ground with 54 yards on 11 carries, including his 58-yard run in the first quarter.
LSU improved to 9-2 and 5-2 with the 42-35 victory. Ole Miss is now 5-6 and 2-5. Mississippi State is up next for the Rebels.
(November 17, 2012)
